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I meant in 'writing style', not so much the content of the story. I guess I worded it wrongly.

Even being dark and all, along with your yuri, it's very much 'you.' I don't say this as a bad thing, but because your writing is well-rounded and basic, there is room to go further into developing it into something better.

Well, I've always prioritized content over presentation. So long as the spelling, grammar, and flow are at a point where it doesn't disrupt the reading, what more do you need?

I've been told I have that down pat, so I don't know what areas stylistically I can improve on. Only thing that comes to mind is that I could describe things more, but I hate describing things. For one, I usually don't know the correct words to describe certain things, and two I think it's a waste of time. I'm sure most of us would agree that rather than spending time reading about what the surroundings look like, we'd rather read about what the characters are doing instead.

So yeah, while you say it could go further, I have no idea how it could be done.

As you mention you have tried 1st PoV and present tense. Experiment more with such things. Go into deep details, switch perspectives, switch tenses, switch genres. Use other characters you normally don't. Screw it if it doesn't look good, post anyway.

Read a lot of books with different styles for inspiration. I'm easily affected, such as after I'd read Snow Crash, which produced a present tense short with my To Aru stuff and was a nice jump from the normal. Normally I stick to Hamilton style, which is the normal past tense and quite clean in its description.

Go wild is all I can say. Then go back to what you were doing and analyze it. Surprisingly, it often brings to light things to improve.

Lina jumped away from another black tornado and glared at the Mazoku Lord, who chuckled. "Don't you like my tornadoes?" Garoth smirked at her as several tornadoes twisted around him. "Aren't they lovely? If they touch you, they'll tear your physical and astral body to shreds."

"O Fragment of the Lord of Nightmares.
Free yourself from Heaven's Bonds.
Become one with my body.
One with my power.
And let us WALK the path of destruction together!
Power that can smash even the souls of the gods!"

Death Bringer raised an eyebrow as a sword of black power formed in Lina's hands. "Like that will save you. This attack scrambles everything!"

His eyes widened as the blade cut through his attacks like they were nothing. "Impressive." He whispered.

"AAAAAAHHHH!" Lina yelled as she jumped into the air, before swinging down and connecting with his body.

"Nnnngh..." He groaned, the sword cutting into his physical and astral body as he grabbed her wrists. "You..." His eyes flashed for a moment, before Lina let out a scream, her eyes closing in shock. "Does it hurt?"

Lina gritted her teeth and opened her left eye, which flashed golden. "Not as much as giving birth did." Forcing her arms down, the Ragna Blade cutting into and finally through the Mazoku Lord's body, causing him to let out a cry of pain even as his body faded away.

Lina panted as the Ragna Blade, energy spent, fizzled. 'Hate casting these spells.' They took such a toll on her body she wasn't sure if she could handle casting this spell too many more. "Come on out, Death Bringer. Even as strong as the Ragna Blade is, a single cut isn't enough to kill you."

A moment later, the Mazoku lord reappeared, leaning against the far wall. "I'm rather impressed that you knew that I couldn't be killed so easily."

"Yeah, your Astral Body's far too large for a single strike to kill you, even at my best, I probably only cut off a limb." Lina chuckled at him, even as his eyes flashed in rage at her.

"You..." He regained his composure as she started to chant again. "That won't work again." His eyes flashed and Lina fell to her knees as she cried out in pain, clutching her head. "Do you want to know a little something?" He slowly walked forward and smirked as blood started to leak out of Lina's ears and eyes. "I wasn't given the title "Death Bringer" for no reason. Unlike the other lords who fell thousands of years ago, I can kill a person... Hundreds of times before finally letting them die for good." He started to chuckle as she looked up at him, her pained expression cleared. "I can kill you, and bring you back... As much as I want to." He laughed as Lina got to her feet before he snapped his fingers.

Lina's eyes widened as a painful throb happened in her chest. "Nnnngh..." She clutched at her chest as she fell down again.

"Oh my, I had forgotten how much pain you humans felt when your hearts exploded." He snapped his fingers again, and Lina panted, she could feel her heart beating again. "Like I said, I can make you die in many... Creative ways." He smirked at her. "I wonder how long before you go crazy?" He shrugged at her. "Well, whatever, let's find out just how many times it takes me to kill you before you beg me to stop." He held his hand up and paused. "Well, I won't kill you again, if you use that blade, by the way, that thing HURTS, did anyone ever tell you that? Anyway, if you use that blade and slice the pillar apart, I'll stop killing you."

He laughed at her. "Please, if you caught me by surprise, that might have worked. Too bad for you." Snapping his fingers, Death Bringer laughed as Lina screamed, or tried to scream. "All your internal organs, removed..." He left her there for a moment, before snapping his fingers and replacing them. "Really, that's pitiful, but then again, you are nothing more than a mere human, Chaos power or not." He walked over to her, knelt down and cupped her chin to make her look at him. "I was also given the title of "Death Bringer" because I can kill entire civilizations with nary a thought." He stood up and turned away from her. "But, like I said before, I can end this if you just use that blade of darkness on the pillar there."

He closed his eyes and turned around as she called out her spell again. "Going to listen?"

"Go to hell!"

"You first." He snapped his fingers and smirked as there was a sickening cracking and crunching sound as Lina's ribs shifted, shattered and pierced her lungs and heart. "Oh my, that must have hurt, considering what I just felt from you." Even before Lina hit the ground, he fixed her bones and internal organs. "Now then... Just do what I ask and everything will be fine."

Lina looked up at him, anger and defiance in her eyes and he sighed. "I'll kill you."

"I've heard that one 72,658 times before." He chuckled and snapped his fingers again. "Let's see what happens if I remove your stomach lining this time."

(---)

Looking out from behind the pillar, Chrono winced as he watched the Mazoku lord, his back to them, toyed with Lina. "Alright... Let's get this over with." He opened the case he had been holding and revealed the twelve Jewel Seeds inside.

"You sure this will work?" Shamal asked, and Chrono shook his head.

"Not sure, but Lina said that between the dimensions is the Lord of Nightmares, and that her Chaos spells draw upon the Lord of Nightmares..."

"So, we're going to open a rift to there?" Yuuno asked as Chrono nodded.

"Wish we had all twenty one, but nine were lost in that explosion back at the Garden of Time." He then tossed one to Shamal and one to Yuuno. "Zafira, if he notices us, you'll need to keep him busy." The Guardian Beast nodded at him. "Alright. Yuuno, Shamal, and I will use three Jewel Seeds while charging the other nine up..."

"And we're going to..." Yuuno started to speak as the nine Jewel Seeds floated in a circle between them.

"Use these twelve to create a rift that will hopefully suck that bastard into the Sea of Chaos." Chrono said softly. "The Jewel Seeds that we hold onto will act as conduits to help us control how the rift forms and the effects."

"Let's hurry then." Shamal said softly as a green triangle appeared under her. Green and blue circles under Yuuno and Chrono respectively formed as well, the Jewel Seeds started to throb with power, before spinning away from them and pointing towards Death Bringer, who still wasn't looking at them.

(---)

After awhile, Death Bringer smirked at Lina, who was on her back and staring out at nothing. "So, that's what? Twenty times that I've killed you now?" He flicked a wrist up and watched as she floated up to her feet. "Just use that blade of darkness... Slash the pillar."

"...Why?" Lina asked feebly even as she stood on shaky feet.

"Oh." He laughed. "I guess you wouldn't know, huh? Eons ago, my master and the Blue Dragon fought each other, before creating servants and sealing each other away in this universe, unfortunately, I never knew where they were sealed away. I've found my master though. This pillar is where he is sealed, I'm sure of it."

Lina was about to ask him what he would do if he was wrong, but decided against it. If he was, and that was the Blue Dragon, then all would be okay. But if not, well, then the whole universe was going to be destroyed.

Even 1/7th of Shabranigdu was too powerful for her to deal with fully, who knew how powerful this guy was.

"NOW!"

Death Bringer's eyes widened and he turned around, just in time to see a circular tear open up, and a Sea of Nothingness form in front of him. "What?" He started groaning as he felt his physical and astral body being pulled towards it. "What is this?"

"A Chaos black hole." Chrono's voice was heard over the roar. "You're going to be pulled straight to the Sea of Chaos."

He groaned and started focusing his power to resist the pull. "This won't work!" He yelled, even as he was slowly dragged towards it. "I WON'T ALLOW IT TO WORK!!"

"Is that all?" A male voice that sounded familiar to her spoke in her mind. "The great Lina Inverse, stopped just because she ran out of stamina? To think that I actually respected you."

"Zel?" She whispered. "I... I just don't have the strength."

"Come on, Miss Lina! An ally of justice shouldn't give up so easily!"

"Amelia..." Lina groaned, even as she started to open her eyes. "Hurts so much..."

"Miss Lina, you're so strong, I just wanted to be like you."

"Slyphiel..." She wondered why she was thinking about her friends at a time like this.

"Come on, Lina. The little girl that I fought with all those times wouldn't give up so easily."

"G...Gourry." Lina forced herself to her feet and saw Death Bringer laughing, even as the Jewel Seeds started to shatter. "I... I won't lose... Not to him." Her eyes flashed red and gold as the Demon's Blood Talisman's lit up one more time. "I forgot... Just who the hell I was."

Chanting the words again, Lina called forth the Ragna Blade. "Hey! Phibrizzo-wannabe! I've gone up against worse than you before, and I always came through, simply because I have friends and family waiting for me."

Death Bringer's eyes were wide. "N...NO!" He let out a yell as Lina slammed the Ragna Blade into his gut. "You..." He growled and grabbed her wrists as he lost control and started to fall in. "If I go, you're coming with me!"

Lina pushed her feet against the floor, trying to stop herself from going with him. "No!"

"You're going with me!" He growled at her as her feet pushed against the floor as the two were slowly dragged in.

"No, she won't." A female voice spoke up over the roar, before a golden streak rushed in, grabbed Lina and a black ball appeared on Death Bringer's wrists, destroying his hands.

Lina looked at her savior. "Reinforce..?" She blinked a few times. "Since when were you a blond?"

Reinforce looked at her, her red eyes had a golden tint to the sclera of her eyes, and smiled softly. "I shall explain later." Another black ball appeared in her free hand and dropped Lina to the ground before rushing forward and slamming the hand-sized ball into Death Bringer's chest. "Diabolic Emission, compact form."

He let loose a scream as that was the last bit that was needed to push him through the portal. "I WILL NOT FORGET THIS!"

"Now!" Chrono yelled. "SEAL!" It was harder than he had hoped for, and he was certain that at least a few more Jewel Seeds shattered in the process, but in the end, the portal did finally seal itself away and four Jewel Seeds fell to the ground, dim from the loss of their power.

Reinforce closed her eyes, held her hands up like she was going to hold someone, before a flash of light and Hayate appeared in her arms. "I do not wish to do that Reverse Unison again, master."

Hayate giggled and rested her head on Reinforce's chest. "That's fine. It felt weird to me too."

Lina jumped away from another black tornado and glared at the Mazoku Lord, who chuckled. "Don't you like my tornadoes?" Garoth smirked at her as several tornadoes twisted around him. "Aren't they lovely? If they touch you, they'll tear your physical and astral body to shreds."

"O Fragment of the Lord of Nightmares.
Free yourself from Heaven's Bonds.
Become one with my body.
One with my power.
And let us WALK the path of destruction together!
Power that can smash even the souls of the gods!"

Death Bringer raised an eyebrow as a sword of black power formed in Lina's hands. "Like that will save you. This attack scrambles everything!"

His eyes widened as the blade cut through his attacks like they were nothing. "Impressive." He whispered.

"AAAAAAHHHH!" Lina yelled as she jumped into the air, before swinging down and connecting with his body.

"Nnnngh..." He groaned, the sword cutting into his physical and astral body as he grabbed her wrists. "You..." His eyes flashed for a moment, before Lina let out a scream, her eyes closing in shock. "Does it hurt?"

Lina gritted her teeth and opened her left eye, which flashed golden. "Not as much as giving birth did." Forcing her arms down, the Ragna Blade cutting into and finally through the Mazoku Lord's body, causing him to let out a cry of pain even as his body faded away.

Lina panted as the Ragna Blade, energy spent, fizzled. 'Hate casting these spells.' They took such a toll on her body she wasn't sure if she could handle casting this spell too many more. "Come on out, Death Bringer. Even as strong as the Ragna Blade is, a single cut isn't enough to kill you."

A moment later, the Mazoku lord reappeared, leaning against the far wall. "I'm rather impressed that you knew that I couldn't be killed so easily."

"Yeah, your Astral Body's far too large for a single strike to kill you, even at my best, I probably only cut off a limb." Lina chuckled at him, even as his eyes flashed in rage at her.

"You..." He regained his composure as she started to chant again. "That won't work again." His eyes flashed and Lina fell to her knees as she cried out in pain, clutching her head. "Do you want to know a little something?" He slowly walked forward and smirked as blood started to leak out of Lina's ears and eyes. "I wasn't given the title "Death Bringer" for no reason. Unlike the other lords who fell thousands of years ago, I can kill a person... Hundreds of times before finally letting them die for good." He started to chuckle as she looked up at him, her pained expression cleared. "I can kill you, and bring you back... As much as I want to." He laughed as Lina got to her feet before he snapped his fingers.

Lina's eyes widened as a painful throb happened in her chest. "Nnnngh..." She clutched at her chest as she fell down again.

"Oh my, I had forgotten how much pain you humans felt when your hearts exploded." He snapped his fingers again, and Lina panted, she could feel her heart beating again. "Like I said, I can make you die in many... Creative ways." He smirked at her. "I wonder how long before you go crazy?" He shrugged at her. "Well, whatever, let's find out just how many times it takes me to kill you before you beg me to stop." He held his hand up and paused. "Well, I won't kill you again, if you use that blade, by the way, that thing HURTS, did anyone ever tell you that? Anyway, if you use that blade and slice the pillar apart, I'll stop killing you."

He laughed at her. "Please, if you caught me by surprise, that might have worked. Too bad for you." Snapping his fingers, Death Bringer laughed as Lina screamed, or tried to scream. "All your internal organs, removed..." He left her there for a moment, before snapping his fingers and replacing them. "Really, that's pitiful, but then again, you are nothing more than a mere human, Chaos power or not." He walked over to her, knelt down and cupped her chin to make her look at him. "I was also given the title of "Death Bringer" because I can kill entire civilizations with nary a thought." He stood up and turned away from her. "But, like I said before, I can end this if you just use that blade of darkness on the pillar there."

He closed his eyes and turned around as she called out her spell again. "Going to listen?"

"Go to hell!"

"You first." He snapped his fingers and smirked as there was a sickening cracking and crunching sound as Lina's ribs shifted, shattered and pierced her lungs and heart. "Oh my, that must have hurt, considering what I just felt from you." Even before Lina hit the ground, he fixed her bones and internal organs. "Now then... Just do what I ask and everything will be fine."

Lina looked up at him, anger and defiance in her eyes and he sighed. "I'll kill you."

"I've heard that one 72,658 times before." He chuckled and snapped his fingers again. "Let's see what happens if I remove your stomach lining this time."

(---)

Looking out from behind the pillar, Chrono winced as he watched the Mazoku lord, his back to them, toyed with Lina. "Alright... Let's get this over with." He opened the case he had been holding and revealed the twelve Jewel Seeds inside.

"You sure this will work?" Shamal asked, and Chrono shook his head.

"Not sure, but Lina said that between the dimensions is the Lord of Nightmares, and that her Chaos spells draw upon the Lord of Nightmares..."

"So, we're going to open a rift to there?" Yuuno asked as Chrono nodded.

"Wish we had all twenty one, but nine were lost in that explosion back at the Garden of Time." He then tossed one to Shamal and one to Yuuno. "Zafira, if he notices us, you'll need to keep him busy." The Guardian Beast nodded at him. "Alright. Yuuno, Shamal, and I will use three Jewel Seeds while charging the other nine up..."

"And we're going to..." Yuuno started to speak as the nine Jewel Seeds floated in a circle between them.

"Use these twelve to create a rift that will hopefully suck that bastard into the Sea of Chaos." Chrono said softly. "The Jewel Seeds that we hold onto will act as conduits to help us control how the rift forms and the effects."

"Let's hurry then." Shamal said softly as a green triangle appeared under her. Green and blue circles under Yuuno and Chrono respectively formed as well, the Jewel Seeds started to throb with power, before spinning away from them and pointing towards Death Bringer, who still wasn't looking at them.

(---)

After awhile, Death Bringer smirked at Lina, who was on her back and staring out at nothing. "So, that's what? Twenty times that I've killed you now?" He flicked a wrist up and watched as she floated up to her feet. "Just use that blade of darkness... Slash the pillar."

"...Why?" Lina asked feebly even as she stood on shaky feet.

"Oh." He laughed. "I guess you wouldn't know, huh? Eons ago, my master and the Blue Dragon fought each other, before creating servants and sealing each other away in this universe, unfortunately, I never knew where they were sealed away. I've found my master though. This pillar is where he is sealed, I'm sure of it."

Lina was about to ask him what he would do if he was wrong, but decided against it. If he was, and that was the Blue Dragon, then all would be okay. But if not, well, then the whole universe was going to be destroyed.

Even 1/7th of Shabranigdu was too powerful for her to deal with fully, who knew how powerful this guy was.

"NOW!"

Death Bringer's eyes widened and he turned around, just in time to see a circular tear open up, and a Sea of Nothingness form in front of him. "What?" He started groaning as he felt his physical and astral body being pulled towards it. "What is this?"

"A Chaos black hole." Chrono's voice was heard over the roar. "You're going to be pulled straight to the Sea of Chaos."

He groaned and started focusing his power to resist the pull. "This won't work!" He yelled, even as he was slowly dragged towards it. "I WON'T ALLOW IT TO WORK!!"

"Is that all?" A male voice that sounded familiar to her spoke in her mind. "The great Lina Inverse, stopped just because she ran out of stamina? To think that I actually respected you."

"Zel?" She whispered. "I... I just don't have the strength."

"Come on, Miss Lina! An ally of justice shouldn't give up so easily!"

"Amelia..." Lina groaned, even as she started to open her eyes. "Hurts so much..."

"Miss Lina, you're so strong, I just wanted to be like you."

"Slyphiel..." She wondered why she was thinking about her friends at a time like this.

"Come on, Lina. The little girl that I fought with all those times wouldn't give up so easily."

"G...Gourry." Lina forced herself to her feet and saw Death Bringer laughing, even as the Jewel Seeds started to shatter. "I... I won't lose... Not to him." Her eyes flashed red and gold as the Demon's Blood Talisman's lit up one more time. "I forgot... Just who the hell I was."

Chanting the words again, Lina called forth the Ragna Blade. "Hey! Phibrizzo-wannabe! I've gone up against worse than you before, and I always came through, simply because I have friends and family waiting for me."

Death Bringer's eyes were wide. "N...NO!" He let out a yell as Lina slammed the Ragna Blade into his gut. "You..." He growled and grabbed her wrists as he lost control and started to fall in. "If I go, you're coming with me!"

Lina pushed her feet against the floor, trying to stop herself from going with him. "No!"

"You're going with me!" He growled at her as her feet pushed against the floor as the two were slowly dragged in.

"No, she won't." A female voice spoke up over the roar, before a golden streak rushed in, grabbed Lina and a black ball appeared on Death Bringer's wrists, destroying his hands.

Lina looked at her savior. "Reinforce..?" She blinked a few times. "Since when were you a blond?"

Reinforce looked at her, her red eyes had a golden tint to the sclera of her eyes, and smiled softly. "I shall explain later." Another black ball appeared in her free hand and dropped Lina to the ground before rushing forward and slamming the hand-sized ball into Death Bringer's chest. "Diabolic Emission, compact form."

He let loose a scream as that was the last bit that was needed to push him through the portal. "I WILL NOT FORGET THIS!"

"Now!" Chrono yelled. "SEAL!" It was harder than he had hoped for, and he was certain that at least a few more Jewel Seeds shattered in the process, but in the end, the portal did finally seal itself away and four Jewel Seeds fell to the ground, dim from the loss of their power.

Reinforce closed her eyes, held her hands up like she was going to hold someone, before a flash of light and Hayate appeared in her arms. "I do not wish to do that Reverse Unison again, master."

Hayate giggled and rested her head on Reinforce's chest. "That's fine. It felt weird to me too."

Spoiler for Comments:

Yes, that *IS* Unision!Reinforce from the PSP game.

...What? Can't I use her?

... okay, that was pretty awesome. I have no idea if all of that would work the way it worked, don't really understand Slayers magic well enough, but it was still pretty awesome. Nothing more I can really say.

Lina jumped away from another black tornado and glared at the Mazoku Lord, who chuckled. "Don't you like my tornadoes?" Garoth smirked at her as several tornadoes twisted around him. "Aren't they lovely? If they touch you, they'll tear your physical and astral body to shreds."

"O Fragment of the Lord of Nightmares.
Free yourself from Heaven's Bonds.
Become one with my body.
One with my power.
And let us WALK the path of destruction together!
Power that can smash even the souls of the gods!"

Death Bringer raised an eyebrow as a sword of black power formed in Lina's hands. "Like that will save you. This attack scrambles everything!"

His eyes widened as the blade cut through his attacks like they were nothing. "Impressive." He whispered.

"AAAAAAHHHH!" Lina yelled as she jumped into the air, before swinging down and connecting with his body.

"Nnnngh..." He groaned, the sword cutting into his physical and astral body as he grabbed her wrists. "You..." His eyes flashed for a moment, before Lina let out a scream, her eyes closing in shock. "Does it hurt?"

Lina gritted her teeth and opened her left eye, which flashed golden. "Not as much as giving birth did." Forcing her arms down, the Ragna Blade cutting into and finally through the Mazoku Lord's body, causing him to let out a cry of pain even as his body faded away.

Lina panted as the Ragna Blade, energy spent, fizzled. 'Hate casting these spells.' They took such a toll on her body she wasn't sure if she could handle casting this spell too many more. "Come on out, Death Bringer. Even as strong as the Ragna Blade is, a single cut isn't enough to kill you."

A moment later, the Mazoku lord reappeared, leaning against the far wall. "I'm rather impressed that you knew that I couldn't be killed so easily."

"Yeah, your Astral Body's far too large for a single strike to kill you, even at my best, I probably only cut off a limb." Lina chuckled at him, even as his eyes flashed in rage at her.

"You..." He regained his composure as she started to chant again. "That won't work again." His eyes flashed and Lina fell to her knees as she cried out in pain, clutching her head. "Do you want to know a little something?" He slowly walked forward and smirked as blood started to leak out of Lina's ears and eyes. "I wasn't given the title "Death Bringer" for no reason. Unlike the other lords who fell thousands of years ago, I can kill a person... Hundreds of times before finally letting them die for good." He started to chuckle as she looked up at him, her pained expression cleared. "I can kill you, and bring you back... As much as I want to." He laughed as Lina got to her feet before he snapped his fingers.

Lina's eyes widened as a painful throb happened in her chest. "Nnnngh..." She clutched at her chest as she fell down again.

"Oh my, I had forgotten how much pain you humans felt when your hearts exploded." He snapped his fingers again, and Lina panted, she could feel her heart beating again. "Like I said, I can make you die in many... Creative ways." He smirked at her. "I wonder how long before you go crazy?" He shrugged at her. "Well, whatever, let's find out just how many times it takes me to kill you before you beg me to stop." He held his hand up and paused. "Well, I won't kill you again, if you use that blade, by the way, that thing HURTS, did anyone ever tell you that? Anyway, if you use that blade and slice the pillar apart, I'll stop killing you."

He laughed at her. "Please, if you caught me by surprise, that might have worked. Too bad for you." Snapping his fingers, Death Bringer laughed as Lina screamed, or tried to scream. "All your internal organs, removed..." He left her there for a moment, before snapping his fingers and replacing them. "Really, that's pitiful, but then again, you are nothing more than a mere human, Chaos power or not." He walked over to her, knelt down and cupped her chin to make her look at him. "I was also given the title of "Death Bringer" because I can kill entire civilizations with nary a thought." He stood up and turned away from her. "But, like I said before, I can end this if you just use that blade of darkness on the pillar there."

He closed his eyes and turned around as she called out her spell again. "Going to listen?"

"Go to hell!"

"You first." He snapped his fingers and smirked as there was a sickening cracking and crunching sound as Lina's ribs shifted, shattered and pierced her lungs and heart. "Oh my, that must have hurt, considering what I just felt from you." Even before Lina hit the ground, he fixed her bones and internal organs. "Now then... Just do what I ask and everything will be fine."

Lina looked up at him, anger and defiance in her eyes and he sighed. "I'll kill you."

"I've heard that one 72,658 times before." He chuckled and snapped his fingers again. "Let's see what happens if I remove your stomach lining this time."

(---)

Looking out from behind the pillar, Chrono winced as he watched the Mazoku lord, his back to them, toyed with Lina. "Alright... Let's get this over with." He opened the case he had been holding and revealed the twelve Jewel Seeds inside.

"You sure this will work?" Shamal asked, and Chrono shook his head.

"Not sure, but Lina said that between the dimensions is the Lord of Nightmares, and that her Chaos spells draw upon the Lord of Nightmares..."

"So, we're going to open a rift to there?" Yuuno asked as Chrono nodded.

"Wish we had all twenty one, but nine were lost in that explosion back at the Garden of Time." He then tossed one to Shamal and one to Yuuno. "Zafira, if he notices us, you'll need to keep him busy." The Guardian Beast nodded at him. "Alright. Yuuno, Shamal, and I will use three Jewel Seeds while charging the other nine up..."

"And we're going to..." Yuuno started to speak as the nine Jewel Seeds floated in a circle between them.

"Use these twelve to create a rift that will hopefully suck that bastard into the Sea of Chaos." Chrono said softly. "The Jewel Seeds that we hold onto will act as conduits to help us control how the rift forms and the effects."

"Let's hurry then." Shamal said softly as a green triangle appeared under her. Green and blue circles under Yuuno and Chrono respectively formed as well, the Jewel Seeds started to throb with power, before spinning away from them and pointing towards Death Bringer, who still wasn't looking at them.

(---)

After awhile, Death Bringer smirked at Lina, who was on her back and staring out at nothing. "So, that's what? Twenty times that I've killed you now?" He flicked a wrist up and watched as she floated up to her feet. "Just use that blade of darkness... Slash the pillar."

"...Why?" Lina asked feebly even as she stood on shaky feet.

"Oh." He laughed. "I guess you wouldn't know, huh? Eons ago, my master and the Blue Dragon fought each other, before creating servants and sealing each other away in this universe, unfortunately, I never knew where they were sealed away. I've found my master though. This pillar is where he is sealed, I'm sure of it."

Lina was about to ask him what he would do if he was wrong, but decided against it. If he was, and that was the Blue Dragon, then all would be okay. But if not, well, then the whole universe was going to be destroyed.

Even 1/7th of Shabranigdu was too powerful for her to deal with fully, who knew how powerful this guy was.

"NOW!"

Death Bringer's eyes widened and he turned around, just in time to see a circular tear open up, and a Sea of Nothingness form in front of him. "What?" He started groaning as he felt his physical and astral body being pulled towards it. "What is this?"

"A Chaos black hole." Chrono's voice was heard over the roar. "You're going to be pulled straight to the Sea of Chaos."

He groaned and started focusing his power to resist the pull. "This won't work!" He yelled, even as he was slowly dragged towards it. "I WON'T ALLOW IT TO WORK!!"

"Is that all?" A male voice that sounded familiar to her spoke in her mind. "The great Lina Inverse, stopped just because she ran out of stamina? To think that I actually respected you."

"Zel?" She whispered. "I... I just don't have the strength."

"Come on, Miss Lina! An ally of justice shouldn't give up so easily!"

"Amelia..." Lina groaned, even as she started to open her eyes. "Hurts so much..."

"Miss Lina, you're so strong, I just wanted to be like you."

"Slyphiel..." She wondered why she was thinking about her friends at a time like this.

"Come on, Lina. The little girl that I fought with all those times wouldn't give up so easily."

"G...Gourry." Lina forced herself to her feet and saw Death Bringer laughing, even as the Jewel Seeds started to shatter. "I... I won't lose... Not to him." Her eyes flashed red and gold as the Demon's Blood Talisman's lit up one more time. "I forgot... Just who the hell I was."

Chanting the words again, Lina called forth the Ragna Blade. "Hey! Phibrizzo-wannabe! I've gone up against worse than you before, and I always came through, simply because I have friends and family waiting for me."

Death Bringer's eyes were wide. "N...NO!" He let out a yell as Lina slammed the Ragna Blade into his gut. "You..." He growled and grabbed her wrists as he lost control and started to fall in. "If I go, you're coming with me!"

Lina pushed her feet against the floor, trying to stop herself from going with him. "No!"

"You're going with me!" He growled at her as her feet pushed against the floor as the two were slowly dragged in.

"No, she won't." A female voice spoke up over the roar, before a golden streak rushed in, grabbed Lina and a black ball appeared on Death Bringer's wrists, destroying his hands.

Lina looked at her savior. "Reinforce..?" She blinked a few times. "Since when were you a blond?"

Reinforce looked at her, her red eyes had a golden tint to the sclera of her eyes, and smiled softly. "I shall explain later." Another black ball appeared in her free hand and dropped Lina to the ground before rushing forward and slamming the hand-sized ball into Death Bringer's chest. "Diabolic Emission, compact form."

He let loose a scream as that was the last bit that was needed to push him through the portal. "I WILL NOT FORGET THIS!"

"Now!" Chrono yelled. "SEAL!" It was harder than he had hoped for, and he was certain that at least a few more Jewel Seeds shattered in the process, but in the end, the portal did finally seal itself away and four Jewel Seeds fell to the ground, dim from the loss of their power.

Reinforce closed her eyes, held her hands up like she was going to hold someone, before a flash of light and Hayate appeared in her arms. "I do not wish to do that Reverse Unison again, master."

Hayate giggled and rested her head on Reinforce's chest. "That's fine. It felt weird to me too."

"Do what?" A female voice spoke up. Turning, his eyes widened as he saw that woman from before, only this time, her eyes were gold, as was her hair. "You and I, Garoth, are going to... Be such good friends."

Garoth screamed as a golden hand wrapped around his body and pulled him towards the woman.

(---)

"Oi!" Vita called into the room as she helped Fate walk in there. The blond girl was tired and worn out, but looking okay.

Signum nodded as she walked in, carrying Nanoha in her arms. "I believe she's yours." She handed Nanoha over to a rather grateful Lina.

Cradling the girl in her arms, the woman nodded tiredly at Signum as she held her daughter. "I'm sorry, Nanoha... I should have known this..."

She didn't even finish her sentence as the whole place started to rumble and the walls cracked. "Oh, damn..."

"Great, and most of us are too tired to blast our way through it." Vita muttered, wishing that a count-down timer or something would pop up to tell them how long they had to get out of there.

"Then just run!" Lina yelled at her as she stood up and hugged her daughter tightly. She would have grabbed Fate, but Signum was already there, putting the girl on her back as the group raced out of the throne room

"Damn Mazoku, they always have a back-up plan!" Lina yelled as they got to the stairs and started running down the steps. Her eyes widened as sections of the stairs broke and fell down. "Be prepared to jump down!" She yelled back as she dropped down the open floor to the stairs below, before tumbling a couple of times and righting herself and making sure that the others made it alright, before running, this time Vita was in the lead.

"Grah!" She grumbled as she felt the stairs start to crumble and fall apart on her. "HURRY!" She she yelled as they continued to avoid falling debris and getting off the stairs as they fell down.

(---)

"Zest..."

The man narrowed his eyes. "Let's go, Quint." He was tired of waiting, and knew that Quint must have been going crazy.

"Be careful, you two." Regius said to them as they nodded at him and moved towards the crumbling building.

(---)

"Almost..." Signum almost cursed as the stairs fell apart at the end, leaving a wall of debris just high enough that they couldn't get through.

"This can't be the end..." Shamal gasped, only to cover her face as the wall exploded in.

"Quint and Zest, here to rescue the big heroes." The woman smiled at them as she rolled in, Zest right behind her, helping them get free of the building.

The whole group got outside and watched as the building crumbled to dust, leaving just a large pillar in its wake.

"What is that?" Zest asked Lina, who shook her head.

"A seal on something that could bring total peace to the universe... Or destroy it."

Zest nodded at that as medical teams started to roll in.

(---)

Hours later...

Nanoha looked down at her hands and watched them tremble. "I..."

"Nanoha!" She blinked and looked up at the sound of Fate's voice. Standing there with her was Yuuno, both were smiling at her as they walked in.

"Where's mom?" She asked, her voice incredibly small and timid at that point.

"Getting a complete check-up by the doctors." Yuuno saw the way she trembled and grabbed her hands, steadying them. "She just wanted to make sure that there was no lasting effects from what that guy did to her."

"I'm suspecting you want to help her close to home, huh?" When Lina nodded, Lindy smiled and gave her a card.

"Huh?" Lina blinked as she looked at it. "...A psychologist?"

"One who moved to Earth from Mid-Childa, actually." Lindy smiled at her. "Nanoha won't need to hide anything about what happened to her." She sighed as Lina still looked dubious about it. "Listen, even the best among the Bureau members sometimes goes through an ordeal that leaves them shell shocked. Your daughter was tortured and tormented at age nine. She's going to need help getting through this."

"I know." Lina sighed softly. "What about Fate and Yuuno?"

Lindy chuckled. "I suspect that they like it on Earth, it's not a bad place. Plus, where else are they going to be able to help Nanoha out if she starts to regress again?"

"You didn't fail her. You went and led a rescue operation against someone that the rest of us would not have been able to defeat, saved your daughter, and the whole universe." She smirked at Lina. "For a civilian, that's quite the accomplishment."

Lina shrugged, even though she was blushing from the praise. "Eh heh... Thanks." She took a deep breath as they continued to walk. "If the two do come to live with us, I think I'll have Fate go through some therapy as well. Having to deal with her mother and sister like she did... Speaking of which, what happened to that woman?"

"Last I heard, Precia was moving to a new place to herself. She said that she released Fate and wasn't responsible for her anymore. I think she just doesn't think that it would ever work out as a mother to Fate after everything that's happened."

"Just keep an eye on her. What about that girl and her family?"

"Hayate?" Lindy raised an eyebrow. "Well, they've plagued the Bureau for an incredibly long time, though there's consideration that "Death Bringer" may have been involved with everything, it's screwing up the trial for them. Plus they stopped the Protection Program from destroying Earth, didn't kill anyone this time around AND they helped save the Universe, it's causing a lot of headaches for the Judicial system."

"What about your son?"

Lindy smiled softly. "He's in a lot of trouble for what he did, or at least, he would be, if that crazy plan of his wasn't been the reason we're all still here right now."

"So, in other words, it's a giant mess right now." Lina laughed as Lindy nodded. "What about Raising Heart?"

"It'll take Mary probably six months to fix it up. Legally, it's Nanoha's, so when it is fixed completely, and the frame reinforced, we'll give her a call and return it to her." Lindy stopped and opened a door. "Go see your daughter."

"Thank you." Lina nodded as she walked into the room.

"Mom..." Nanoha tried smiling, but Lina shook her head.

"It's okay, Nanoha." Lina rubbed her head and smiled as she saw Fate and Yuuno there with her. "Listen, we're going to have to head home soon, I'm sure that your dad and siblings are worried about us, all of us, by now."

"What about Yuuno-kun? And Fate-chan?"

Lina shrugged as the two kids looked at her worriedly. "You two are welcome to come back with us and live on Earth. I wouldn't mind having a couple more kids running around the house, and I'm sure that Miyuki and Kyouya wouldn't mind it either."

"You... You mean it?" Fate asked, her eyes wide as Lina nodded and smiled at them.

"You two are quite welcome to live with my family for as long as you desire. And considering what you two did today, I insist that you two come and live in my home, with my daughters, my son, my husband and me."

Lina smiled at the way all of their eyes lit up in sheer joy at that. "Oh, Nanoha... Raising Heart was in pretty bad shape, it's going to take them awhile to fix it, okay?"

She nodded, her mood getting a damper on it, but at least it was something.

"So, as soon as your doctor here says you can, Lindy's going to take us to Earth, okay?"

"What about Lindy-san, Chrono-kun and the rest of the Arthra crew?" Nanoha asked and Lina shrugged.

"Up to them really. This is their world, not Earth. But Lindy does seem to like it, so, who knows? Maybe they'll stick around for awhile?" She was almost certain that Lindy was going to stick around, after all, the best way for the Bureau to learn her magic was to have someone there learn it first and then give the rest of the Bureau the run-down on her spells.

(---)

The next day...

"MOM!" Miyuki hugged her mother tightly. "Nanoha! Fate! Yuuno!" She released her mother and hugged the three kids tightly. "What happened?"

"It's a long story." Lina said tiredly, yelping as she felt a hand on her butt before strong arms wrapped around her from behind. "Shiro!"

"Sorry." He chuckled at her as she blushed. "Just missed you."

Lina sighed into his embrace. "Missed you too..." She shot him a look that said that they would talk later. "How about I make us all a good breakfast, huh?"

The way that Fate, Yuuno and Nanoha's stomachs all growled at that moment let her know that she had made the right announcement, even as the three children in question blushed red.

Lina laughed at them. "Well, that settles it, come on then." She got out of her husband's grasp as everyone went to the kitchen, helping prepare a large breakfast for the household. "Where's Kyouya?"

"With Shinobu." Miyuki grumbled and Lina, Shiro and Nanoha all laughed at her. "What's so funny?"

“What was it that you wanted to talk about?” asked Seikou as she was pulled aside by Yami.

“Do you still intend to go through with it? Are you going to tell him the truth about what happened back on that planet?”

“Is this really the time to talk about this?” That uncomfortable feeling was back again.

“I did say that we would continue the discussion before you went to help Material-L,” said the Lord of Darkness. “Look, you saw how the peasant reacted to what she did earlier and you know how she often does things on a whim without thinking about the long-term effects. How do you think he will react when he hears about what you did? Especially since he knows that you are of sound mind and are aware of the consequences when you drained those religious fools.”

The thought of how he may react greatly bothered the Nanoha replica but she knew that misdirection was something Material-D had a talent in. If she hadn’t been firm in her resolve to come clean with the Librarian, she probably would have been swayed by Yami’s words and left the subject alone. “I have already made my choice. It’s the only way that I can be worthy of the warmth that he has shared with me.”

The Hayate replica had to resist the urge to facepalm. “Good grief…”

“What about you? Why are you continuing your attempts to talk me out of this course of action?” asked Material-S.

“I’m only asking that you carefully consider the consequences of what could happen. Right now, the peasant is extremely stressed thanks to Material-L’s urge to get a ‘sidekick’. If you were to drop in on him now and tell him what happened, I have no doubt that he will move beyond the breaking point and change for the worse. And the last thing I need is another subject that has a crazed mental state similar to Material-L.”

And speaking of Material-L, the two could hear her frantic movements as she approached them rapidly. “Yami-chan! Seikou-chan!”

“Call me ‘Your Majesty’!” growled Material-D. “What is it?”

“Sette-chan…! Sette-chan is…!”

The two shared a quick glance before moving past Rai to get to the bottom of this new development.

**********

*DOO DO DO DO… DOO DO… DOO DO DO!*

There was that annoying theme music again but it was the last time that Sette would have to hear it since she has reached the required number of wins. “This is my win.”

“Well, I’ll be. I guess congratulations are in order,” said Pandemona as the cards and the playing board, which held more pink squares than blue, faded into nothing. “Now then, let’s start with the imprinting process.”

“……” Even with various oddly shaped magical circles surrounding her, the Combat Cyborg showed no display of emotion.

“What’s wrong? Shouldn’t you be more excited about obtaining power that you can use to obtain victory and glory over your enemies?”

“Power, glory, victory… those things don’t excite me at all,” said Sette in a quiet tone. “For what purpose should I gather power for? Where should I seek glory? Without clear answers for those questions, victory would be meaningless.”

If Pandemona had any facial expressions, it would have expressed surprise and intrigue. “Hoo boy… you really are an interesting one. Looks like we found ourselves one intriguing master. If anything, at least I’m glad we’re not bonding with a fool likely to succumb to the Grimoire’s power.”

“I care not for whatever power you may offer me.”

“Really? Not even to protect what you treasure the most? Everyone has something worth protecting. Whether it is pride, family, friends …”

“…… family…?”

The Guardian Force felt pleased upon knowing that it had struck a chord. “So that’s how it is. It’s not surprising really as family is a bigger draw than friends. The need to protect family is probably a very common reason why power is sought. Am I correct?”

Sette paused to carefully consider what exactly she felt when she heard Pandemona mention family. “It would be a reasonable conclusion to come to for most people but not in my case.”

“Oh?”

“I… have not spoken with my sisters for many years. When I do see them again, there are many things that I wish to communicate to them but I do not believe I am capable of putting them into words. So I will do it in a language that they are all familiar with: through battle.”

“Oh ho ho… you are an interesting one. Let’s get the imprinting done quickly so we can move on to the good stuff!” Once again, the magical circles spread themselves out around the pink haired Combat Cyborg as the Grimoire begun to react.

"The whole group got outside and watched as the building crumbled to dust, leaving just a large pillar in its wake."

That was the Ground Forces HQ, the massive tower at the center of Cranagan, right? That's going to cause major diviations.
So, is Lina going to adopt Fate this time around? And what about Yuuno, the Infinite Library needs its librarian.

Hm, I have to echo others' opinions a bit here: this tome deal came rather out of nowhere, and I can't see either why Sette would need it. Interesting look into her thought processes, though; therapy or not, she's still not entirely free of her screwed-up past life.

Quote:

Originally Posted by DezoPenguin

For both of you (Hah! I kid; I can count four! ;) ) waiting for the second half of the Shadowverse two-shot...here it is!

Spoiler for Running Through Shadows--Chapter 2:

-snip-

Spoiler for Author's Notes:

Credit for the linear rifle type of small arms that the Night Breakers aren't using, much to Lutecia's happiness, goes to synaesthetic (aka cori.writes.stuff) from her Shadowverse story, False Light. General credit for inspiring me to write the story, though, goes to Fuyu no Sora, for an ongoing discussion on the morality of the NSIS's existence and operations. Fun stuff, these gray areas.

One of the nice things about writing Nanoha fanfiction is that when using child characters, I can err on the side of understanding and maturity, since they all tend to be wise beyond their years. Ward in this story tends to be a bit quick on the uptake for twelve, but given the setting (and other obvious factors) I'm hoping that it didn't jar.

The reason why Lutecia can't teleport away directly is totally fanon; mostly it's an internal justification for me why RF6 doesn't go teleporting people into battle in StrikerS, but instead deploys by helicopter and personal flight (and even Lulu doesn't teleport directly away after the first RF6/Numbers engagement, but has to make her escape later, after the battle).

The Night Breakers are named after motorcycle models, Conall Viper after the Dodge Viper, and Durward Brantley the Fifth after the Aston Martin DBV. Bonus points if you can identify the source of the place names!

Spoiler for Auctorial ramblings:

I considered adding a subsequent fight scene where Lutecia has to protect Ward against a more adequate enemy (something along the level of the guys from "Within Our Own Shadow"), both to show the contrast between her fighting to protect him and the finale and to add to the action, but ultimately decided not to. On the one hand, this story isn't supposed to be about zaptacular action scenes, and on the other, I figure that if enough pyrotechnics start getting flung around, it won't be believable that the Shadows could hide the traces of their presence from Fate's Enforcer team.

Ow. Harsh, harsh twist there. With all these piling up on her, no wonder Lutecia's slowly cracking under the weight.

Quote:

Originally Posted by RadiantBeam

It amuses me how thoroughly this little piece contradicts how I'm feeling at the moment. But hey, what can you do.

Spoiler for Scars:

-snip-

Spoiler for General ramblings and dedication:

Just Victor and Lutecia, goofing off a little after a mission. Apologies for no backstory on the mission itself, but I felt it didn't fit, and I didn't really think much about it anyway when I actually wrote the short. In terms of timeline.... I'd probably say pre-Vivio, when Lutecia is still sore from losing Miranda, but not starting to crack yet.

As for general things, well... today's the one year anniversary since the death of my friends, Lance and Lexa. So I wanted to write something for them. They liked my humor a lot, so I thought I'd give it a shot and see what I got.

"Carry You Home" is property of James Blunt.

Great interaction between Lutecia and Victor; those two bounce off each other really well. Nice, humorous fluff overall. Although as one of the FF.net reviews also mentioned, reading your notes afterward does put an entirely different, serious spin on the short.

Quote:

Originally Posted by deathcurse

Since RB's Shadowverse seems to be back lately, I thought I'd drop out of my NaNoWriMo haze to offer an update ^^.

Back to the Shadows! Auris starts to put some pieces of the mystery together...but who's tricking who?

Crime Never Sleeps
Part 12

“The worst things we do are always by our own choice.”

Spoiler for Crime Never Sleeps, part 12:

-snip-

Spoiler for Author's Note:

Alright, this part isn't edited to the point that I'm pleased with, but I can't think of what else to do with it :heh:, so here it is! I had difficulty with Auris' lines, they seemed a mite cheesy--but that may be in character, since she finds it awkward to appear caring!

This is the last bit that may have contained parts that appeared before, from here on out it's 100% new material! :D

30-year old Captain Rai glanced out the window of the transport ship as it ascended the atmosphere, repeating that comment upon noticing the devastation below once more. For dozens of kilometers around, the forest was torn up badly and pockmarked with large craters, as if two giants had decided to take a stroll and then engaged in an impromptu wrestling match. He shook his head, the scene reminding him of the incident on Episol, which had involved warship bombardment from orbit. The destruction here on Supool wasn't quite as large, but it was still very visible from high orbit.

Especially the largest crater of them all.

Rai had served under Commander Harlaown for many years, but he had never seen a battle between mages cause so much destruction. Of course, he hadn't been involved in the war, as that had come before his time, either.

"Hey there, are you all alone?"

He remembered he was just a young 12-year-old street orphan on Earth, and had picked Fate's pocket, just like he had done to many others. And due to knowing all the ins and outs of the area, he could always escape; his speed was also an advantage, part of the reason he had been nicknamed "Rai" by the other street kids. But Fate surprised him, managing to not only keep up, but somehow get ahead of him and block his path.

"You can keep the money if you like, but don't you want something better for your life?"

He was dismissive of her at first, but then she showed him magic, and told him he had potential, and that she could train him. He was hooked from the get-go, and he spent his next half-a-dozen years training on Mid-Childa, with the goal of becoming her subordinate. There was still much about her he didn't know, as she didn't tend to share much with her juniors, but he respected her for her magical skills, her investigative abilities, and her overall moral code. It was the main reason he could believe in the Bureau, because there were benevolent people like her at the helm.

"Captain Rai, reporting for duty. Please take care of me, Commander Harlaown; I'll be under your care from now on!"

"Likewise, Captain. I expect good things from you."

Which is why he would do anything to protect her now.

But he had to admit this latest development left him considerably confused; her last command before she disappeared was to return to the ship and await further orders. However, after a day had passed without any further word, so he had gone against her orders to begin searching. He could guess that she probably encountered Seikou, that triple S class threat that had been the Bureau's focus lately, and most likely wanted to face it alone. Given all that he had learned about Seikou's power, he was more than willing to admit that the commander was probably one of the few who could actually tangle with her; Rai personally knew just how monstrously strong Fate was.

But why remove the communicator? Why not broadcast her position in case they were needed for backup? True, they probably couldn't match the target's magical power; he had heard through the grapevine how badly Signum's unit had been hit when they engaged the suspect. Did Fate wanted to spare them? An odd sentiment, but he was used to her doing things her way, so he let it pass.

"She's unconscious, but has a steady pulse," the med tech informed him. "She seems to have gone into some sort of magical shock. We can't tell much more without a thorough checkup, however. I suggest we take her back to Mid-Childa immediately for treatment."

His commander was now laying comatose in the ship's med bay, recovered the next day after Rai had grown worried enough to order a new search. But he was shocked to see the condition his commander was in.

"She was still tightly gripping her device when we found her, but there is a problem," Lt. Janus explained, showing him the heavily cracked golden triangle that had several chunks missing. "It's inactive, and we're not sure we can restore enough functionality to tell what happened. It had to be related to that incredible magic surge we detected."

Not just detected, Rai realized, but visibly saw with the naked eye from their position hovering in the clouds over the eastern ocean. A brilliant light that exploded on the horizon, growing in size and intensity, ultimately reaching a size several kilometers across while leaving a crater about as big that could be seen from space. It was the main reason they knew where to start their search in the first place.

"Captain Rai, we've just cleared the atmosphere and are ready to enter hyperspace," came the voice over his communicator from the ship's own captain, breaking him out of his reverie.

Rai tapped his ear piece. "Acknowledged, engage engines. Get us back as soon as possible."

There was no reply, but he didn't expect one.

Instead, he turned his attention back to the planet below, hoping he did the right thing in leaving Janus and the rest of the Enforcers below, to continue their search for the target. Given the magical output they detected and Commander Harlaown's condition, whoever did this was monstrously strong indeed. Of course, he had heard the rumors of Seikou the Starlight Destroyer that beat full contingents of Enforcers and soldiers not once, not twice, but at least three times. Someone who could do that was deserving of great caution, and justified the high threat level the Bureau had assigned her. However, he had left clear instructions that Janus and her unit not engage at all, but just stick to surveillance.

Right before the ship jumped into hyperspace, Rai turned to glance down at the destruction below, including the several kilometer-sized crater that had been visible from space, and his earlier words echoed through his mind once more.

What the hell happened?

x~~*~~x

"With the prosecution resting it's case, we will adjourn for now," the female magistrate announced with a pound of the gavel. "We will reconvene next week, where the defense will present it's case. You're dismissed."

["Justice" moves quite rapidly,] Teana inwardly groused. Of course, she knew that with so few actual lawbreakers these days, there wasn't any sort of backlog in the court system to slow things down. [Still, I was hoping to draw this out longer; it's not looking good for Wendi.]

Nonetheless, Teana put on a smile while she hugged her red-haired sister, promising Wendi that things were well in hand before the guards took the #11 cyborg back to her cell. Teana wished she didn't have to bend the truth like that, but she needed to keep her sisters in high spirits, and so far the leads she had weren't too promising, and the prosecution's case was damning; several witnesses had come forward with testimony that Wendi had been overheard complaining about Hayate as well as suggesting that perhaps it was time to replace her. That had been accompanied by some audio and video recordings as well.

But it didn't make sense; Teana knew where Wendi was during the times she was recorded, although they couldn't prove it. And having personally gone through the recordings, Teana had determined they were legit; that was Wendi's voice and image. The Homeworld Security director knew that Quattro's IS left distinctive signals when it was used, but she detected none of that in the files; they recorded exactly what they saw, and detected no transformation magic in play.

So how did Quattro do it?

"Things don't look too good," came the almost purring voice of the cyborg devil incarnate from behind Teana. "It's a shame, too. I really liked Wendi; she was one of my sisters, too."

Teana turned around and strolled through the small gate to the audience section of the courtroom, pausing to glare at her new nemesis. "You need to put more effort into your lies. I will find exactly how you're behind this, and once I show Hayate, you'll wish she had left you in prison."

Quattro shrugged, seemingly more amused by Teana's efforts then the actual plot being played out. "If you say so. I just wanted to come by to express my condolences, before I report to Hayate. She has been showing a renewed interest in my toys, so I'm hoping for a field test soon. I do wish you luck on your defense, though." She then grinned in a manner that suggested the complete opposite. "You'll need it. Ciao!"

Teana watched the woman turn and stroll out of the courtroom along with most of the rest of the audience, taking a few steps towards the door herself before pausing next to one aisle. "So?"

Givo stood up and nodded, speaking in a quiet voice. "I got a reading on her. I should be able to track her wherever she goes now."

"I told you, it won't be easy freeing the rest," Teana reminded him. "Your comrades were captured during Vita's assault on the rebel base; they are high-class fugitives. Sneaking one of you out wasn't too hard, but it'll be very difficult to arrange freedom for the rest. However, that depends on you finding out what Quattro is up to."

She hadn't told him, but the main reason for wiping his data from the system was his unique magical skill. Once Teana had learned of Givo's ability to track anyone or anything he had been able to get a read on, she had to make sure that Quattro didn't find out about it. Right now, he was Teana's ace-in-the-hole.

"I know, but if you can't arrange what we promised, I might just let your sister be convicted," Givo countered darkly. "Fitting karma for her. Executed by the same system that she was a party to when she killed my mother."

[If I can keep him focused,] Teana sighed internally, then decided to remind him exactly where he stood. "I can put you back into the system at anytime, too."

Givo glanced up at her, then nodded; he knew his place. He didn't have to like it, but Teana didn't care, as long as she could free Wendi.

"Let's go, then," she told him, beginning to walk off as he fell into step beside her. "Officially, you're my new aide, and as long as you have your ID, you should be allowed almost anywhere I can go, and that's pretty much most everywhere on Mid-Childa. Just be quiet about your abilities."

She knew she didn't have to tell him as they had gone over this before, but did so anyway. He didn't reply, but slipped off sometime before they reached the elevator, probably to begin trailing Quattro. For a moment, Teana entertained the notion of making him a full time agent someday; his skill would enable him to find anyone he had met before, making him the perfect tracker provided they were on the planet. But she dismissed that thought almost immediately; she knew he wouldn't go for it.

And Teana had to finish preparing a defense for Wendi's next court date.

x~~*~~x

Verossa crept into the darkened room, collapsing his umbrella and shaking the water from it. While the rain continued to relentlessly assault the building, Verossa let his eyes grow accustomed to the change in visibility, trying to make out the contents of the chamber, but the owners had done a very good job eliminating any light sources. He dearly hoped this wasn't another dead end, like the eight previous places he had checked, but there was only one way to be sure.

He reached into his coat and absently brushed his fingers against the disc, held within it's protective casing. The only evidence of something that suggested there was far more in play than he realized, which had been a keepsake of an old security guard; one that had manned the stations that day of the JS incident when the cradle attacked. The cameras had recorded something that day that the guard was the only witness to. He was on Regius's payroll, though, and thus disappeared with the only security camera recording shortly thereafter, fearing that he'd be held somewhat to account for all that Regius had been doing.

And now it was in Verossa's possession.

His thoughts drifted back to the present, and just as he was wondering if he got the wrong place once again, he suddenly felt a presence behind him and a sword at his neck; he cursed, not having felt her presence at all.

"Don't move, or I'll remove your head," the quiet command from the woman who had gotten the drop on him.

He let out a breath. "That would be a shame; I'm quite attached to my head, Deed."

"Verossa!?" the woman gasped, the sword lowering slightly. "Lights."

The room was suddenly flooded with illumination, temporarily blinding Verossa, but when his eyes finally adjusted, he noted the familiar cyborg standing in front of him with twin swords lowered. Another familiar cyborg, Otto, was standing against the wall several meters behind her, studying the new arrival. Inwardly, Verossa felt a sigh of relief, having managed to track the two down; both Otto and Deed had joined the Saint Church upon their release from rehabilitation, and had been serving Carim personally until recently. This was one of the safe houses that Carim and her inner circle had set up far in advance, should anything happen. Verossa just counted himself lucky that these houses were still in existence.

"What are you doing here?" Deed questioned, eyeing him. "We hadn't heard from you in so long, we thought you might have been dead."

"I had to go deep undercover," he explained with a sigh, taking off his coat and hanging it on a nearby chair. "Carim had sent me off many years ago to find out some things; information even she didn't know, that she knew she didn't know, but that she felt was vitally important. However, I didn't expect to find a destroyed mansion when I returned. What happened?"

When Deed's face lowered, Otto closed her eyes and explained, "We're not sure, since Carim sent us away to hide here. I returned later to check, but I saw what you did; the place was a mess. We can only assume the Bureau found her, but if so, we're in trouble."

"More than you know," Verossa answered, reaching into the inner breast pocket and pulling out the disc.

"What do you mean?" Deed questioned, curiously studying the object in his hand. "What's that?"

Verossa eyed both of them as he held up the disc. "If you have a suitable player, we should really watch this first, and then I'll explain all I know."

x~~*~~x

Hayate opened her eyes, many thoughts going through her head as she glanced down at the unconscious golden-haired woman in the bed. Rein had just merged with Fate to scan her memories, then unisoned with Hayate once more to share them, and the conclusions that had been drawn left her disturbed. Fate herself hadn't yet regained consciousness since she was brought in two days ago, and while Hayate wanted to allow her friend to wake up on her own to share what she knew, in the end the Supreme Commander decided she couldn't wait; she needed that information now.

"[I know what you're thinking,]" Rein told her, reading her mistress's thoughts. "[Because I see the same thing. Her actions, her mannerisms, her fighting style... she may be a clone, but she's Nanoha.]"

Hayate sighed while sitting back in her chair next to the hospital bed, and ran a hand through her bleached hair that was evidence of her current unison. "[I know what you're going to say. That before, I could pretend that she was just a clone created by Jail; a tool, and nothing more. That's why I could justify having 'it' killed before Jail's tool could do some harm.]"

"[But she's not,]" Rein stated solemnly. "[Not just a tool. Not just a clone. That determination and battle fierceness; she's as much Nanoha as the original.]"

Hayate's fist slammed down on the edge of the chair, cracking the frame under the pressure. "Damn it, I know that! And damn Jail for setting one my oldest friends against me! I ought to drag his brain back out of confinement for some more torture." She sighed again and rubbed her temples. "But I can't just change the laws on a personal whim; I have to apply them fairly and evenly. That's why, as much as it pained me, I had to arrest Wendi for treason. Even if I capture Nanoha now, she has to stand trial; justice has to be served. Somehow, I almost think that's what Jail intended; use her as a way to torture me."

"[You know that can't be true,]" Rein countered. "[Jail can be vindictive, but his goals aren't that simplistic. She's up to something, and believes it in strongly enough to fight Fate that hard.]"

The Supreme Commander didn't respond, feeling the weight of her office upon her. Sometimes, she dreamed of just giving it all up, but there was no one to replace her. Without her, the Bureau could collapse. She couldn't show weakness nor favoritism, nor bend the rules for anyone. Under her leadership, crime had fallen dramatically, lost logia cases had shown a marked drop in severity, and worlds under the Bureau's flag had come to know peace; billions in the dimensional sea counted on her.

Taking another glance at the patient in the hospital bed, Hayate reached out and placed a hand on top of Fate's, feeling the warmth within. Now having Fate's memories of her fight with Nanoha, Hayate realized what must have happened. Normally, they wove stunning effects into their spells, to knock out their opponent with magical damage rather than inflict real harm, but Nanoha's Moonlight Breaker and Fate's Rail Gun Extension mixed unpredictably into one large explosion of wild magic that intensified the effect. In short, there was no telling when Fate would wake up.

Hayate finally stood, sparing one more glance down at her longtime friend and subordinate. [But I know Nanoha is going to come sooner or later, so I have to start preparing.]

She turned and strode from the room, pausing as the door swished closed behind her. "Captain Rai, I see you plan to continue standing guard."

"Yes sir," he replied dutifully, keeping his gaze straight ahead. "I left the rest of the unit on Supool to continue searching, and I'll return once the Enforcer Commander awakens."

Hayate tilted her head slightly. "You're one of Fate's kids, aren't you?"

"Sir?" the man questioned.

The Supreme Commander chuckled. "Long story. You probably don't know too much of her history. Keep up the good work, Captain. We need more strong people we can depend on like you in the Bureau."

Captain Rai was quick with the salute. "Yes sir!"

Hayate left the area, then. She had difficult and uncomfortable plans to make.

x~~*~~x

"Umin, stop picking on Celi!" the Saint Church nun called, causing the young boy to temporarily stop chasing and poking the young girl with a stick. "Or do you want me to tell Sister D-"

"Waaa, I'll stop!" Umin cried, dropping his stick and running away.

Celi paused, took one look at the stick, then picked it up and chased after the young boy, laughing merrily.

Sister Sein sighed and resumed her trek through the saint Church orphanage. "Geez. That's the fourth time this week. I'm really going to have to ask my sisters how they keep these kids in line." She paused after turning a corner, seeing the door down the hall slightly ajar. [That's strange; she couldn't have....]

Carefully, the cyborg nun tiptoed the rest of the way, and then gently pushed the door open to peek inside, smiling in relief to see the room's occupant still residing in bed. The relief turned into curiosity when she noticed the patient had a visitor, in the form of a young girl on crutches. A whimper sounded from the bed, causing the nun to quickly enter the room to check on the woman in the bed.

The girl-on-crutches finally noticed she was no longer alone. "Is she going to be alright? She's been asleep for three days now."

The nun felt the unconscious woman's forehead, brushing the bangs out of the way to the sound of more whimpers and moans. "She should be. She just needs rest." She turned to give the young girl a smile. "I appreciate you looking after her, Kela, but we should let her be for now."

"Okay," was Kela's subdued response, as she balanced on her crutches and began making her way out.

The nun watched her go, then turned back and inhaled sharply; deep blue eyes were open and staring at her, and a voice croaked, "Sein?"

The cyborg nun smiled warmly and poured some water from the pitcher into a crude metal cup. "Welcome back, Nanoha. How are you feeling?"

"A little better," Nanoha answered, after curing the dryness in her throat with the proffered water. "Mostly just bad dreams. What happened with that girl who was just here?"

"Kela?" Sein questioned. "She was born that way, with a crippled foot, and we don't have the money to get treatment for it. We found her on the doorstep to the orphanage when she was just a baby, and we only know her name because of the card attached to the basket."

"An orphanage?" Nanoha inquired, sitting up to glance around the room, and through the open window to the sea beyond. "Is that where I am?"

"Easy, you've been out of it for a few days," Sein cautioned, helping by placing extra pillows behind the woman. "The children actually found you washed up on the beach not too far from here, and I came by to check on things out. But yes, this is officially a Saint Church orphanage, although if we didn't receive a monthly stipend from the Bureau, we wouldn't be able to take care of the children."

Nanoha's gaze dropped into her lap. "I see. Did you find anyone else near me?"

Sein shook her head. "No, just you. Would you mind telling me what happened? Last I knew, you were supposed to be dead! And here you are, not having aged a day!"

A half-smile formed on Nanoha's lips. It was a familiar question that she had come to expect, and thus launched into her explanation.

x~~*~~x

"Dammit, how could we miss this?" Deed cursed, punctuating her remarked by slamming her fist into the arm of her chair.

Verossa backed up the tape to the scene in question, which was focused clearly on Regius's office, past the point after Signum and Agito had left it. Auris was still unconscious, with the bodies of Regius, Zest, and Due still visible. He paused it just as a new figure materialized into the room, body fully covered by a black cloak, complete with hood.

"Whoever it is, they never turned their face towards the camera," Verossa replied. "It's one of the big mysteries I have yet to figure out, but somehow, I suspect that this person is behind much of what has gone in the past 50 years. Maybe even before that. Although, they aren't the only one."

The trio watched again, as Due struggled to rise, clearly injured, but not as dead as they had previously believed, stuttering, "Wh-who are you!?"

The cloaked figure didn't answer right away, but waved his or her hands and the body of a duplicate Due landed on the floor. Then, he/she held out a hand and spoke in a low, gravely and husky voice, "Come with me if you want to live. I require you."

It was unclear to Verossa as to whether it was a male or female voice, although he was leaning towards male. Whoever it was, the figure didn't wait for a response, but grabbed the real Due's hand and pulled her over his/her shoulder, positioning the fake Due body in her place. Then, with a magical flash, the two teleported out. Several minutes later, the security detail arrived in the room to secure the area, and the image dissolved into static.

"You've learned nothing about this person?" Deed questioned again.

Verossa shook his head. "No. And it was almost luck that I found the security guard that had fled with this recording. But as you can clearly see, we have a major problem."

The two sisters met his gaze, their solemn expressions relaying the fact that they clearly understood the full implications of what they had just seen.

x~~*~~x

"Hello Fate, how are you feeling?"

The woman in the hospital bed turned her head. "I'm doing better. The doctors tell me I should be able to get up tomorrow, and be back to normal in a few more."

Mariel smiled and sat down beside the bed, patting the other girl's hand tenderly. "That's good. I heard you had a run-in with your old friend, Nanoha. How is she?"

At the mention of the name, Fate's emotions took a downward trend.. "Physically, emotionally, and magically, she's a near-perfect clone. For better or worse, she's Nanoha." Almost unconsciously, Fate's hands clenched. "But I was unable to persuade her. She's going to fight us."

"Even if it is Nanoha, how would that even be possible?" Marial wondered aloud. "She's just one person. I have heard of a few scattered terrorist groups, but even if she teamed up with them, there wouldn't be any way she could-"

"Nanoha will find a way," Fate interrupted the other woman, then half-smiled. "She's always been like that; powering on through no matter what was in front of her. She won't give up."

[And I'm not entirely sure I can or will stop her,] Fate didn't say out loud. She had been on the wrong side once before, and it was almost too terrifying to consider that she might be there again. [Is she right?]

In order to change the slightly uncomfortable topic, she asked, "How is Bardiche?"

Mariel bit her lip, then opened a holographic screen showing the heavily cracked device along with a running technical display. "I'll be honest that it doesn't look too good. From what I have learned, Bardiche was bathed with an incredible amount of wild magic, which overloaded practically all it's systems. We might have to rebuild the entire thing. But it's partly why you're mostly undamaged; the device filtered much of the wild magic out of your body."

The revelation hit the already emotional Fate even harder, but she swallowed and tried to hide it. "Is he going to be alright?"

"I assume you mean the AI, and it's difficult to tell," the Bureau's head scientist answered. "It's scrambled with a lot of sectors unreadable. Since you'll be up and about in a day or two, I'll have a new device you can use in the meantime. It's similar enough to Bardiche that you should be able to adapt to it, and I've even tweaked it in order to enhance most of your standard spells."

"To be honest, technology has progressed quite far since your device was first made," Marial explained. "The upgrades we've performed over the years has allow it to keep pace, but it might be time to go for something new. I'll transfer what I can of the AI into the new shell and keep as much of the old functionality as I can."

Fate lapsed into silence, remembering a time long ago, when Linith had constructed Bardiche for her. In a lot of ways, whenever Fate wielded the weapon, it felt like her old instructor and friend was somehow still with her; if she lost Bardiche, she would have lost her last link to that time, as well as another familiar presence she had come to count on. That wasn't something she wanted to contemplate.

Marial reached out to pat Fate's shoulder. "Don't worry too much. There's still a chance we can rebuild Bardiche, but we'll know for sure in a week or two. At the least, we'll salvage as much as we can and incorporate it. See, look."

The Enforcer commander looked up as the head tech opened another holographic screen, displaying a blue triangle device that was nearly identical to Bardiche, except for the color. As Fate glanced back and forth between the two, she couldn't help but feel a similar duality inside that mirrored the twin devices. She had come to embrace her current path, no matter where that had taken her or even despite the hardships it meant. However, ever since her encounter with Nanoha, she had been feeling something new inside; a sensation both old and new, which somehow excited and disturbed her at the same time.

The confused woman turned over on her side, away from Mariel, and pulled the blanket over her shoulders. "Thank you. I know you'll do your best. If you don't mind, though, I'd like to get some rest."

Mariel switched the screens off and stood up, the edges of her lips slowly curving upwards. "I'll do what I can for you, just as I always have. Get some rest; you'll need it for the trials yet to come."

Fate puzzled over those words for a moment, but when she turned around to ask, Mariel was gone.

x~~*~~x

"Wow," Sein finally commented, trying to take everything in. "Carim always told us to have faith, but never told us much. That explains the damage your device took."

"It's a lot to take in, I know," Nanoha agreed, looking back on her life thus far and finding it almost unbelievable herself. She glanced at the cracked red jewel that had been mostly silent from where it rested on the nightstand next to her bed; as best as she could determine, it was in self-repair mode and she had no idea when it would be fully repaired again. "And so I need to go find Lutecia again. She might be able to teleport me back to Mid-Childa."

She had shared most everything that had happened since she woke up, but leaving out anything relating to Vivio or time travel. [I especially can't tell anyone else about the latter just yet, until I figure out what I'm going to do myself.] Still, the prophecy was enough to cover any gaps.

"Well, that's going to be a problem," Sein answered with a sigh. "You're no longer on the Jalacia continent; I guess your fight with Fate tossed you across the Aghes ocean to end up here on the Gojan continent, and the Bureau has forbidden all travel to and from Jalacia."

Nanoha laid back down and sighed, hoping Vivio, Einhart and Ix we're still okay. "They are probably still looking for me. I need to get back to Mid-Childa and announce my presence so they stop looking for me there. Lutecia and Erio are in danger."

[And Vivio,] she added silently.

Sein leaned back in her chair and bit her lip. "There still might be a way. When you're well enough to travel, I'll take you to some people I know. But I can't promise anything, and it's not going to be easy."

x~~*~~x

"Okay, now," Yuuno whispered to his wife as they lay under the sheets in the small bed.

She nodded in the darkness and threw off the covers, having expected this moment; it had been at least 10 minutes since Runessa had left on her rounds, so they had a short window of opportunity. "Are you sure about this?"

Yuuno nodded as they quickly got dressed. "I've kept track of how long she's gone each time and when she comes back. We should have enough time now, and as I said before, certain things aren't adding up. The sooner we get out of here, the better. I want to find out what's going on above, and be in a position to help Nanoha if I can. After all, it's my fault she's in this position now."

Shari found his shoulder in the dark and gave it a squeeze, saying a lot without saying anything at all, and then the pair finished getting dressed and moved to the steel door that led an aquifer; however, it was still locked as expected. They had been told it was for their own protection, to keep them hidden in case a patrol came through the aquifer tunnels, but Yuuno no longer bought that rationale.

"My turn," Shari said with a grin, pulling a small device from her pocked and placing it against the lock, the magnetic grips holding it in place. "Took me awhile to make this, but thankfully, Runessa supplied me with parts, ostensibly to get your collar off, but you're right; she's deliberately not giving me the right parts, when I know she could. But I was able to make this!"

She tapped a button and there was a sizzling sound; and then the lock fell away and the door swung open.

"Have I mentioned how much I love you?" Yuuno stated, unable to suppress a grin.

"You could always stand to mention it more," she replied, amused while taking the small device off the door in case they needed to reuse it.

"Well, I'll show you how much once we get out of here," he promised, and then moved through the door and landed in the running water of the aquifer channel with a splash. "Let's go."

Shari took the offered hand as her husband helped her down into the chilling water. "Where to now?"

"Not sure, but if we keep moving upstream, we should be able to find the central pool that the water comes from," Yuuno suggested as they began to move. "There should be a maintenance hatch we can escape out of from there."

But they hadn't made it very far, just around the aquifer corner as a matter of fact, before their attempted escape ran into a dead end. The couple stared at the near blank cement wall before Yuuno stepped up against the flow and felt the upwelling of water through the grate below.

"It shouldn't be like this, if I recall the water systems correctly," Shari reasoned. "It should be a normal channel all the way, right?"

"Indeed, it should," echoed a male voice around them, a moment before the walls around them fell away, revealing a much larger room around them, filled with computer equipment and glowing capsules. "If this was actually what you thought it was." He sighed, then turned to address the darkness along the other side. "I told you that this wouldn't last too long."

Runessa walked out of the shadows. "My apologies, but I thought I could maintain the illusion a bit longer. What gave me away?"

Yuuno smiled grimly. "It wasn't quite what you did, but what you didn't do. No one else knew what we were up to, so there was no one who could have given you an order to keep us hidden. But I didn't think Runessa Magnus would turn against the church that tried to help her."

"And he was under my predecessor's care," the disturbingly familiar male voice sounded again; Yuuno almost had forgotten he was there. "It was a simple matter to include some subconscious programming, designed to take over in the event he attempted to attack one of my children. It merely let him believe he had struck a fatal blow."

The figure finally leaned forward, exposing the youthful face of Jail Scaglietti to the light. "Indeed. And we have so much to talk about, Yuuno H. Fineo. You and your lovely wife are going to tell me all about time travel...."

Xx~~*~~xX

Author's notes:

For those curious, yes, Fate's Rail Gun in the last chapter was partially inspired by the Railgun anime (another good one that I encourage people to watch). When trying to think up new attacks for Fate, Mikoto's control over electricity and electromagnetism provided some inspiration, although Fate's is a more traditional railgun in that her Zanber sword splits down the middle to provide the two prongs for the "barrel". And as a side fact, whenever I do combat now, I tend to listen to "Only My Railgun" and "Level5 Judglight" (Both Railgun OPs) to get me into the proper mood, heh. I like the upbeat nature of the songs.

Rai in Japanese means "lightning" for those who don't know.

New job has been sapping most of my time, and there were several scenes here I had long debated about how to handle exactly. As always, I'm hoping the next chapter doesn't take as long, heh.

All I have to say in general is... wow. Plans within plans within plans, huh? You've worked out quite the intricate web. And you've got a talent for these morally ambiguous works, I see; I have so much tendency to paint obvious villains that it's rather impressive to me how well you can have me hating Auris one moment and sympathizing with her the next. The same goes for... most of the characters, in fact. Even lil' Raven, who I went in assuming I would find unshakeably sympathetic, but instead I occasionally... wonder.

Very much looking forward to the next part now that I can just follow along normally!

Thanks! Part of it is that I enjoy writing from the bad guy's POV (as my first fic here would testify to ), so making the "villains" appear sympathetic is fun. And we'll see about Raven...

Quote:

Originally Posted by SNobleJr

Well, to be honest, you've managed to weave such a thick web of intrigue here, with all those plots and schemes colliding with each other, that I haven't the faintest idea how this is going to end.

Do note that it also means I'm sitting on the edge of my seat and can't wait to read the next part, so I'd say you've got a success here. :P

When I edit my completed draft, I'll try to make all the plots slightly less confusing , although of course it'll make more sense when read with hindsight! (Which is tough for me as a writer of all this mystery stuff--I know how it ends, so sometimes I forget to put in those little essential details that readers need!)

New job has been sapping most of my time, and there were several scenes here I had long debated about how to handle exactly. As always, I'm hoping the next chapter doesn't take as long, heh.

Aha! Some answers at last!

Spoiler for Spoileriffic discussion:

You'd already set up the Due revelation, of course, in the earlier chapters with Quattro, but it's good to see the how of it--and also, confirmation that it's the actual Due, not a clone/substitute Due. I note also how you lampshaded how Due framed Wendi as well (ruling out Quattro's illusion IS, and transformation magic, but Due's transformation IS is carefully not eliminated, and since the Big Reveal is later in the chapter, this gives us one last chance to notice it. And Young!Jail is, of course, the Jail embryo who was within Due and therefore unable to be removed by the TSAB. So it's Quattro, Due, and Young!Jail who have deliberately twisted the Bureau in their image. And since they're talking about time travel, it sounds like they're looking into the idea of going back in time and making sure that they win the first time around...(though seriously, what's the point? They rule the universe anyway, they've had fun torturing, corrupting, and murdering their enemies, and the only costs have been the lost of "dead wood" sisters that Quattro (and presumably Due, though we don't get as much evidence on that) never cared for anyway)

The next question is, are Young!Jail and the Old!Jail who made Seikou all part of the same, unified plan, or perhaps could Young!Jail's interest in time travel be in trying to thwart the plan of Old!Jail which would end up undoing all Young!Jail, Quattro, and Due's evil work? No doubt we'll see...probably right as we're on the edge of it being too late for maximum suspense!

Heh, Captain Rai as one of Fate's "kids"--good shout-out to MD.

I have to say, that after getting past the early "Kick the viewers repeatedly in the emotional groin!" set-up chapters and the rough patches in the late teens over Vivio, Ein, and Ixy's relationship, this story is really starting to hit on all cylinders with payoffs of action and suspense plotting. Excellent work these past two chapters.

30-year old Captain Rai glanced out the window of the transport ship as it ascended the atmosphere, repeating that comment upon noticing the devastation below once more. For dozens of kilometers around, the forest was torn up badly and pockmarked with large craters, as if two giants had decided to take a stroll and then engaged in an impromptu wrestling match. He shook his head, the scene reminding him of the incident on Episol, which had involved warship bombardment from orbit. The destruction here on Supool wasn't quite as large, but it was still very visible from high orbit.

Especially the largest crater of them all.

Rai had served under Commander Harlaown for many years, but he had never seen a battle between mages cause so much destruction. Of course, he hadn't been involved in the war, as that had come before his time, either.

"Hey there, are you all alone?"

He remembered he was just a young 12-year-old street orphan on Earth, and had picked Fate's pocket, just like he had done to many others. And due to knowing all the ins and outs of the area, he could always escape; his speed was also an advantage, part of the reason he had been nicknamed "Rai" by the other street kids. But Fate surprised him, managing to not only keep up, but somehow get ahead of him and block his path.

"You can keep the money if you like, but don't you want something better for your life?"

He was dismissive of her at first, but then she showed him magic, and told him he had potential, and that she could train him. He was hooked from the get-go, and he spent his next half-a-dozen years training on Mid-Childa, with the goal of becoming her subordinate. There was still much about her he didn't know, as she didn't tend to share much with her juniors, but he respected her for her magical skills, her investigative abilities, and her overall moral code. It was the main reason he could believe in the Bureau, because there were benevolent people like her at the helm.

"Captain Rai, reporting for duty. Please take care of me, Commander Harlaown; I'll be under your care from now on!"

"Likewise, Captain. I expect good things from you."

Which is why he would do anything to protect her now.

But he had to admit this latest development left him considerably confused; her last command before she disappeared was to return to the ship and await further orders. However, after a day had passed without any further word, so he had gone against her orders to begin searching. He could guess that she probably encountered Seikou, that triple S class threat that had been the Bureau's focus lately, and most likely wanted to face it alone. Given all that he had learned about Seikou's power, he was more than willing to admit that the commander was probably one of the few who could actually tangle with her; Rai personally knew just how monstrously strong Fate was.

But why remove the communicator? Why not broadcast her position in case they were needed for backup? True, they probably couldn't match the target's magical power; he had heard through the grapevine how badly Signum's unit had been hit when they engaged the suspect. Did Fate wanted to spare them? An odd sentiment, but he was used to her doing things her way, so he let it pass.

"She's unconscious, but has a steady pulse," the med tech informed him. "She seems to have gone into some sort of magical shock. We can't tell much more without a thorough checkup, however. I suggest we take her back to Mid-Childa immediately for treatment."

His commander was now laying comatose in the ship's med bay, recovered the next day after Rai had grown worried enough to order a new search. But he was shocked to see the condition his commander was in.

"She was still tightly gripping her device when we found her, but there is a problem," Lt. Janus explained, showing him the heavily cracked golden triangle that had several chunks missing. "It's inactive, and we're not sure we can restore enough functionality to tell what happened. It had to be related to that incredible magic surge we detected."

Not just detected, Rai realized, but visibly saw with the naked eye from their position hovering in the clouds over the eastern ocean. A brilliant light that exploded on the horizon, growing in size and intensity, ultimately reaching a size several kilometers across while leaving a crater about as big that could be seen from space. It was the main reason they knew where to start their search in the first place.

"Captain Rai, we've just cleared the atmosphere and are ready to enter hyperspace," came the voice over his communicator from the ship's own captain, breaking him out of his reverie.

Rai tapped his ear piece. "Acknowledged, engage engines. Get us back as soon as possible."

There was no reply, but he didn't expect one.

Instead, he turned his attention back to the planet below, hoping he did the right thing in leaving Janus and the rest of the Enforcers below, to continue their search for the target. Given the magical output they detected and Commander Harlaown's condition, whoever did this was monstrously strong indeed. Of course, he had heard the rumors of Seikou the Starlight Destroyer that beat full contingents of Enforcers and soldiers not once, not twice, but at least three times. Someone who could do that was deserving of great caution, and justified the high threat level the Bureau had assigned her. However, he had left clear instructions that Janus and her unit not engage at all, but just stick to surveillance.

Right before the ship jumped into hyperspace, Rai turned to glance down at the destruction below, including the several kilometer-sized crater that had been visible from space, and his earlier words echoed through his mind once more.

What the hell happened?

x~~*~~x

"With the prosecution resting it's case, we will adjourn for now," the female magistrate announced with a pound of the gavel. "We will reconvene next week, where the defense will present it's case. You're dismissed."

["Justice" moves quite rapidly,] Teana inwardly groused. Of course, she knew that with so few actual lawbreakers these days, there wasn't any sort of backlog in the court system to slow things down. [Still, I was hoping to draw this out longer; it's not looking good for Wendi.]

Nonetheless, Teana put on a smile while she hugged her red-haired sister, promising Wendi that things were well in hand before the guards took the #11 cyborg back to her cell. Teana wished she didn't have to bend the truth like that, but she needed to keep her sisters in high spirits, and so far the leads she had weren't too promising, and the prosecution's case was damning; several witnesses had come forward with testimony that Wendi had been overheard complaining about Hayate as well as suggesting that perhaps it was time to replace her. That had been accompanied by some audio and video recordings as well.

But it didn't make sense; Teana knew where Wendi was during the times she was recorded, although they couldn't prove it. And having personally gone through the recordings, Teana had determined they were legit; that was Wendi's voice and image. The Homeworld Security director knew that Quattro's IS left distinctive signals when it was used, but she detected none of that in the files; they recorded exactly what they saw, and detected no transformation magic in play.

So how did Quattro do it?

"Things don't look too good," came the almost purring voice of the cyborg devil incarnate from behind Teana. "It's a shame, too. I really liked Wendi; she was one of my sisters, too."

Teana turned around and strolled through the small gate to the audience section of the courtroom, pausing to glare at her new nemesis. "You need to put more effort into your lies. I will find exactly how you're behind this, and once I show Hayate, you'll wish she had left you in prison."

Quattro shrugged, seemingly more amused by Teana's efforts then the actual plot being played out. "If you say so. I just wanted to come by to express my condolences, before I report to Hayate. She has been showing a renewed interest in my toys, so I'm hoping for a field test soon. I do wish you luck on your defense, though." She then grinned in a manner that suggested the complete opposite. "You'll need it. Ciao!"

Teana watched the woman turn and stroll out of the courtroom along with most of the rest of the audience, taking a few steps towards the door herself before pausing next to one aisle. "So?"

Givo stood up and nodded, speaking in a quiet voice. "I got a reading on her. I should be able to track her wherever she goes now."

"I told you, it won't be easy freeing the rest," Teana reminded him. "Your comrades were captured during Vita's assault on the rebel base; they are high-class fugitives. Sneaking one of you out wasn't too hard, but it'll be very difficult to arrange freedom for the rest. However, that depends on you finding out what Quattro is up to."

She hadn't told him, but the main reason for wiping his data from the system was his unique magical skill. Once Teana had learned of Givo's ability to track anyone or anything he had been able to get a read on, she had to make sure that Quattro didn't find out about it. Right now, he was Teana's ace-in-the-hole.

"I know, but if you can't arrange what we promised, I might just let your sister be convicted," Givo countered darkly. "Fitting karma for her. Executed by the same system that she was a party to when she killed my mother."

[If I can keep him focused,] Teana sighed internally, then decided to remind him exactly where he stood. "I can put you back into the system at anytime, too."

Givo glanced up at her, then nodded; he knew his place. He didn't have to like it, but Teana didn't care, as long as she could free Wendi.

"Let's go, then," she told him, beginning to walk off as he fell into step beside her. "Officially, you're my new aide, and as long as you have your ID, you should be allowed almost anywhere I can go, and that's pretty much most everywhere on Mid-Childa. Just be quiet about your abilities."

She knew she didn't have to tell him as they had gone over this before, but did so anyway. He didn't reply, but slipped off sometime before they reached the elevator, probably to begin trailing Quattro. For a moment, Teana entertained the notion of making him a full time agent someday; his skill would enable him to find anyone he had met before, making him the perfect tracker provided they were on the planet. But she dismissed that thought almost immediately; she knew he wouldn't go for it.

And Teana had to finish preparing a defense for Wendi's next court date.

x~~*~~x

Verossa crept into the darkened room, collapsing his umbrella and shaking the water from it. While the rain continued to relentlessly assault the building, Verossa let his eyes grow accustomed to the change in visibility, trying to make out the contents of the chamber, but the owners had done a very good job eliminating any light sources. He dearly hoped this wasn't another dead end, like the eight previous places he had checked, but there was only one way to be sure.

He reached into his coat and absently brushed his fingers against the disc, held within it's protective casing. The only evidence of something that suggested there was far more in play than he realized, which had been a keepsake of an old security guard; one that had manned the stations that day of the JS incident when the cradle attacked. The cameras had recorded something that day that the guard was the only witness to. He was on Regius's payroll, though, and thus disappeared with the only security camera recording shortly thereafter, fearing that he'd be held somewhat to account for all that Regius had been doing.

And now it was in Verossa's possession.

His thoughts drifted back to the present, and just as he was wondering if he got the wrong place once again, he suddenly felt a presence behind him and a sword at his neck; he cursed, not having felt her presence at all.

"Don't move, or I'll remove your head," the quiet command from the woman who had gotten the drop on him.

He let out a breath. "That would be a shame; I'm quite attached to my head, Deed."

"Verossa!?" the woman gasped, the sword lowering slightly. "Lights."

The room was suddenly flooded with illumination, temporarily blinding Verossa, but when his eyes finally adjusted, he noted the familiar cyborg standing in front of him with twin swords lowered. Another familiar cyborg, Otto, was standing against the wall several meters behind her, studying the new arrival. Inwardly, Verossa felt a sigh of relief, having managed to track the two down; both Otto and Deed had joined the Saint Church upon their release from rehabilitation, and had been serving Carim personally until recently. This was one of the safe houses that Carim and her inner circle had set up far in advance, should anything happen. Verossa just counted himself lucky that these houses were still in existence.

"What are you doing here?" Deed questioned, eyeing him. "We hadn't heard from you in so long, we thought you might have been dead."

"I had to go deep undercover," he explained with a sigh, taking off his coat and hanging it on a nearby chair. "Carim had sent me off many years ago to find out some things; information even she didn't know, that she knew she didn't know, but that she felt was vitally important. However, I didn't expect to find a destroyed mansion when I returned. What happened?"

When Deed's face lowered, Otto closed her eyes and explained, "We're not sure, since Carim sent us away to hide here. I returned later to check, but I saw what you did; the place was a mess. We can only assume the Bureau found her, but if so, we're in trouble."

"More than you know," Verossa answered, reaching into the inner breast pocket and pulling out the disc.

"What do you mean?" Deed questioned, curiously studying the object in his hand. "What's that?"

Verossa eyed both of them as he held up the disc. "If you have a suitable player, we should really watch this first, and then I'll explain all I know."

x~~*~~x

Hayate opened her eyes, many thoughts going through her head as she glanced down at the unconscious golden-haired woman in the bed. Rein had just merged with Fate to scan her memories, then unisoned with Hayate once more to share them, and the conclusions that had been drawn left her disturbed. Fate herself hadn't yet regained consciousness since she was brought in two days ago, and while Hayate wanted to allow her friend to wake up on her own to share what she knew, in the end the Supreme Commander decided she couldn't wait; she needed that information now.

"[I know what you're thinking,]" Rein told her, reading her mistress's thoughts. "[Because I see the same thing. Her actions, her mannerisms, her fighting style... she may be a clone, but she's Nanoha.]"

Hayate sighed while sitting back in her chair next to the hospital bed, and ran a hand through her bleached hair that was evidence of her current unison. "[I know what you're going to say. That before, I could pretend that she was just a clone created by Jail; a tool, and nothing more. That's why I could justify having 'it' killed before Jail's tool could do some harm.]"

"[But she's not,]" Rein stated solemnly. "[Not just a tool. Not just a clone. That determination and battle fierceness; she's as much Nanoha as the original.]"

Hayate's fist slammed down on the edge of the chair, cracking the frame under the pressure. "Damn it, I know that! And damn Jail for setting one my oldest friends against me! I ought to drag his brain back out of confinement for some more torture." She sighed again and rubbed her temples. "But I can't just change the laws on a personal whim; I have to apply them fairly and evenly. That's why, as much as it pained me, I had to arrest Wendi for treason. Even if I capture Nanoha now, she has to stand trial; justice has to be served. Somehow, I almost think that's what Jail intended; use her as a way to torture me."

"[You know that can't be true,]" Rein countered. "[Jail can be vindictive, but his goals aren't that simplistic. She's up to something, and believes it in strongly enough to fight Fate that hard.]"

The Supreme Commander didn't respond, feeling the weight of her office upon her. Sometimes, she dreamed of just giving it all up, but there was no one to replace her. Without her, the Bureau could collapse. She couldn't show weakness nor favoritism, nor bend the rules for anyone. Under her leadership, crime had fallen dramatically, lost logia cases had shown a marked drop in severity, and worlds under the Bureau's flag had come to know peace; billions in the dimensional sea counted on her.

Taking another glance at the patient in the hospital bed, Hayate reached out and placed a hand on top of Fate's, feeling the warmth within. Now having Fate's memories of her fight with Nanoha, Hayate realized what must have happened. Normally, they wove stunning effects into their spells, to knock out their opponent with magical damage rather than inflict real harm, but Nanoha's Moonlight Breaker and Fate's Rail Gun Extension mixed unpredictably into one large explosion of wild magic that intensified the effect. In short, there was no telling when Fate would wake up.

Hayate finally stood, sparing one more glance down at her longtime friend and subordinate. [But I know Nanoha is going to come sooner or later, so I have to start preparing.]

She turned and strode from the room, pausing as the door swished closed behind her. "Captain Rai, I see you plan to continue standing guard."

"Yes sir," he replied dutifully, keeping his gaze straight ahead. "I left the rest of the unit on Supool to continue searching, and I'll return once the Enforcer Commander awakens."

Hayate tilted her head slightly. "You're one of Fate's kids, aren't you?"

"Sir?" the man questioned.

The Supreme Commander chuckled. "Long story. You probably don't know too much of her history. Keep up the good work, Captain. We need more strong people we can depend on like you in the Bureau."

Captain Rai was quick with the salute. "Yes sir!"

Hayate left the area, then. She had difficult and uncomfortable plans to make.

x~~*~~x

"Umin, stop picking on Celi!" the Saint Church nun called, causing the young boy to temporarily stop chasing and poking the young girl with a stick. "Or do you want me to tell Sister D-"

"Waaa, I'll stop!" Umin cried, dropping his stick and running away.

Celi paused, took one look at the stick, then picked it up and chased after the young boy, laughing merrily.

Sister Sein sighed and resumed her trek through the saint Church orphanage. "Geez. That's the fourth time this week. I'm really going to have to ask my sisters how they keep these kids in line." She paused after turning a corner, seeing the door down the hall slightly ajar. [That's strange; she couldn't have....]

Carefully, the cyborg nun tiptoed the rest of the way, and then gently pushed the door open to peek inside, smiling in relief to see the room's occupant still residing in bed. The relief turned into curiosity when she noticed the patient had a visitor, in the form of a young girl on crutches. A whimper sounded from the bed, causing the nun to quickly enter the room to check on the woman in the bed.

The girl-on-crutches finally noticed she was no longer alone. "Is she going to be alright? She's been asleep for three days now."

The nun felt the unconscious woman's forehead, brushing the bangs out of the way to the sound of more whimpers and moans. "She should be. She just needs rest." She turned to give the young girl a smile. "I appreciate you looking after her, Kela, but we should let her be for now."

"Okay," was Kela's subdued response, as she balanced on her crutches and began making her way out.

The nun watched her go, then turned back and inhaled sharply; deep blue eyes were open and staring at her, and a voice croaked, "Sein?"

The cyborg nun smiled warmly and poured some water from the pitcher into a crude metal cup. "Welcome back, Nanoha. How are you feeling?"

"A little better," Nanoha answered, after curing the dryness in her throat with the proffered water. "Mostly just bad dreams. What happened with that girl who was just here?"

"Kela?" Sein questioned. "She was born that way, with a crippled foot, and we don't have the money to get treatment for it. We found her on the doorstep to the orphanage when she was just a baby, and we only know her name because of the card attached to the basket."

"An orphanage?" Nanoha inquired, sitting up to glance around the room, and through the open window to the sea beyond. "Is that where I am?"

"Easy, you've been out of it for a few days," Sein cautioned, helping by placing extra pillows behind the woman. "The children actually found you washed up on the beach not too far from here, and I came by to check on things out. But yes, this is officially a Saint Church orphanage, although if we didn't receive a monthly stipend from the Bureau, we wouldn't be able to take care of the children."

Nanoha's gaze dropped into her lap. "I see. Did you find anyone else near me?"

Sein shook her head. "No, just you. Would you mind telling me what happened? Last I knew, you were supposed to be dead! And here you are, not having aged a day!"

A half-smile formed on Nanoha's lips. It was a familiar question that she had come to expect, and thus launched into her explanation.

x~~*~~x

"Dammit, how could we miss this?" Deed cursed, punctuating her remarked by slamming her fist into the arm of her chair.

Verossa backed up the tape to the scene in question, which was focused clearly on Regius's office, past the point after Signum and Agito had left it. Auris was still unconscious, with the bodies of Regius, Zest, and Due still visible. He paused it just as a new figure materialized into the room, body fully covered by a black cloak, complete with hood.

"Whoever it is, they never turned their face towards the camera," Verossa replied. "It's one of the big mysteries I have yet to figure out, but somehow, I suspect that this person is behind much of what has gone in the past 50 years. Maybe even before that. Although, they aren't the only one."

The trio watched again, as Due struggled to rise, clearly injured, but not as dead as they had previously believed, stuttering, "Wh-who are you!?"

The cloaked figure didn't answer right away, but waved his or her hands and the body of a duplicate Due landed on the floor. Then, he/she held out a hand and spoke in a low, gravely and husky voice, "Come with me if you want to live. I require you."

It was unclear to Verossa as to whether it was a male or female voice, although he was leaning towards male. Whoever it was, the figure didn't wait for a response, but grabbed the real Due's hand and pulled her over his/her shoulder, positioning the fake Due body in her place. Then, with a magical flash, the two teleported out. Several minutes later, the security detail arrived in the room to secure the area, and the image dissolved into static.

"You've learned nothing about this person?" Deed questioned again.

Verossa shook his head. "No. And it was almost luck that I found the security guard that had fled with this recording. But as you can clearly see, we have a major problem."

The two sisters met his gaze, their solemn expressions relaying the fact that they clearly understood the full implications of what they had just seen.

x~~*~~x

"Hello Fate, how are you feeling?"

The woman in the hospital bed turned her head. "I'm doing better. The doctors tell me I should be able to get up tomorrow, and be back to normal in a few more."

Mariel smiled and sat down beside the bed, patting the other girl's hand tenderly. "That's good. I heard you had a run-in with your old friend, Nanoha. How is she?"

At the mention of the name, Fate's emotions took a downward trend.. "Physically, emotionally, and magically, she's a near-perfect clone. For better or worse, she's Nanoha." Almost unconsciously, Fate's hands clenched. "But I was unable to persuade her. She's going to fight us."

"Even if it is Nanoha, how would that even be possible?" Marial wondered aloud. "She's just one person. I have heard of a few scattered terrorist groups, but even if she teamed up with them, there wouldn't be any way she could-"

"Nanoha will find a way," Fate interrupted the other woman, then half-smiled. "She's always been like that; powering on through no matter what was in front of her. She won't give up."

[And I'm not entirely sure I can or will stop her,] Fate didn't say out loud. She had been on the wrong side once before, and it was almost too terrifying to consider that she might be there again. [Is she right?]

In order to change the slightly uncomfortable topic, she asked, "How is Bardiche?"

Mariel bit her lip, then opened a holographic screen showing the heavily cracked device along with a running technical display. "I'll be honest that it doesn't look too good. From what I have learned, Bardiche was bathed with an incredible amount of wild magic, which overloaded practically all it's systems. We might have to rebuild the entire thing. But it's partly why you're mostly undamaged; the device filtered much of the wild magic out of your body."

The revelation hit the already emotional Fate even harder, but she swallowed and tried to hide it. "Is he going to be alright?"

"I assume you mean the AI, and it's difficult to tell," the Bureau's head scientist answered. "It's scrambled with a lot of sectors unreadable. Since you'll be up and about in a day or two, I'll have a new device you can use in the meantime. It's similar enough to Bardiche that you should be able to adapt to it, and I've even tweaked it in order to enhance most of your standard spells."

"To be honest, technology has progressed quite far since your device was first made," Marial explained. "The upgrades we've performed over the years has allow it to keep pace, but it might be time to go for something new. I'll transfer what I can of the AI into the new shell and keep as much of the old functionality as I can."

Fate lapsed into silence, remembering a time long ago, when Linith had constructed Bardiche for her. In a lot of ways, whenever Fate wielded the weapon, it felt like her old instructor and friend was somehow still with her; if she lost Bardiche, she would have lost her last link to that time, as well as another familiar presence she had come to count on. That wasn't something she wanted to contemplate.

Marial reached out to pat Fate's shoulder. "Don't worry too much. There's still a chance we can rebuild Bardiche, but we'll know for sure in a week or two. At the least, we'll salvage as much as we can and incorporate it. See, look."

The Enforcer commander looked up as the head tech opened another holographic screen, displaying a blue triangle device that was nearly identical to Bardiche, except for the color. As Fate glanced back and forth between the two, she couldn't help but feel a similar duality inside that mirrored the twin devices. She had come to embrace her current path, no matter where that had taken her or even despite the hardships it meant. However, ever since her encounter with Nanoha, she had been feeling something new inside; a sensation both old and new, which somehow excited and disturbed her at the same time.

The confused woman turned over on her side, away from Mariel, and pulled the blanket over her shoulders. "Thank you. I know you'll do your best. If you don't mind, though, I'd like to get some rest."

Mariel switched the screens off and stood up, the edges of her lips slowly curving upwards. "I'll do what I can for you, just as I always have. Get some rest; you'll need it for the trials yet to come."

Fate puzzled over those words for a moment, but when she turned around to ask, Mariel was gone.

x~~*~~x

"Wow," Sein finally commented, trying to take everything in. "Carim always told us to have faith, but never told us much. That explains the damage your device took."

"It's a lot to take in, I know," Nanoha agreed, looking back on her life thus far and finding it almost unbelievable herself. She glanced at the cracked red jewel that had been mostly silent from where it rested on the nightstand next to her bed; as best as she could determine, it was in self-repair mode and she had no idea when it would be fully repaired again. "And so I need to go find Lutecia again. She might be able to teleport me back to Mid-Childa."

She had shared most everything that had happened since she woke up, but leaving out anything relating to Vivio or time travel. [I especially can't tell anyone else about the latter just yet, until I figure out what I'm going to do myself.] Still, the prophecy was enough to cover any gaps.

"Well, that's going to be a problem," Sein answered with a sigh. "You're no longer on the Jalacia continent; I guess your fight with Fate tossed you across the Aghes ocean to end up here on the Gojan continent, and the Bureau has forbidden all travel to and from Jalacia."

Nanoha laid back down and sighed, hoping Vivio, Einhart and Ix we're still okay. "They are probably still looking for me. I need to get back to Mid-Childa and announce my presence so they stop looking for me there. Lutecia and Erio are in danger."

[And Vivio,] she added silently.

Sein leaned back in her chair and bit her lip. "There still might be a way. When you're well enough to travel, I'll take you to some people I know. But I can't promise anything, and it's not going to be easy."

x~~*~~x

"Okay, now," Yuuno whispered to his wife as they lay under the sheets in the small bed.

She nodded in the darkness and threw off the covers, having expected this moment; it had been at least 10 minutes since Runessa had left on her rounds, so they had a short window of opportunity. "Are you sure about this?"

Yuuno nodded as they quickly got dressed. "I've kept track of how long she's gone each time and when she comes back. We should have enough time now, and as I said before, certain things aren't adding up. The sooner we get out of here, the better. I want to find out what's going on above, and be in a position to help Nanoha if I can. After all, it's my fault she's in this position now."

Shari found his shoulder in the dark and gave it a squeeze, saying a lot without saying anything at all, and then the pair finished getting dressed and moved to the steel door that led an aquifer; however, it was still locked as expected. They had been told it was for their own protection, to keep them hidden in case a patrol came through the aquifer tunnels, but Yuuno no longer bought that rationale.

"My turn," Shari said with a grin, pulling a small device from her pocked and placing it against the lock, the magnetic grips holding it in place. "Took me awhile to make this, but thankfully, Runessa supplied me with parts, ostensibly to get your collar off, but you're right; she's deliberately not giving me the right parts, when I know she could. But I was able to make this!"

She tapped a button and there was a sizzling sound; and then the lock fell away and the door swung open.

"Have I mentioned how much I love you?" Yuuno stated, unable to suppress a grin.

"You could always stand to mention it more," she replied, amused while taking the small device off the door in case they needed to reuse it.

"Well, I'll show you how much once we get out of here," he promised, and then moved through the door and landed in the running water of the aquifer channel with a splash. "Let's go."

Shari took the offered hand as her husband helped her down into the chilling water. "Where to now?"

"Not sure, but if we keep moving upstream, we should be able to find the central pool that the water comes from," Yuuno suggested as they began to move. "There should be a maintenance hatch we can escape out of from there."

But they hadn't made it very far, just around the aquifer corner as a matter of fact, before their attempted escape ran into a dead end. The couple stared at the near blank cement wall before Yuuno stepped up against the flow and felt the upwelling of water through the grate below.

"It shouldn't be like this, if I recall the water systems correctly," Shari reasoned. "It should be a normal channel all the way, right?"

"Indeed, it should," echoed a male voice around them, a moment before the walls around them fell away, revealing a much larger room around them, filled with computer equipment and glowing capsules. "If this was actually what you thought it was." He sighed, then turned to address the darkness along the other side. "I told you that this wouldn't last too long."

Runessa walked out of the shadows. "My apologies, but I thought I could maintain the illusion a bit longer. What gave me away?"

Yuuno smiled grimly. "It wasn't quite what you did, but what you didn't do. No one else knew what we were up to, so there was no one who could have given you an order to keep us hidden. But I didn't think Runessa Magnus would turn against the church that tried to help her."

"And he was under my predecessor's care," the disturbingly familiar male voice sounded again; Yuuno almost had forgotten he was there. "It was a simple matter to include some subconscious programming, designed to take over in the event he attempted to attack one of my children. It merely let him believe he had struck a fatal blow."

The figure finally leaned forward, exposing the youthful face of Jail Scaglietti to the light. "Indeed. And we have so much to talk about, Yuuno H. Fineo. You and your lovely wife are going to tell me all about time travel...."

Xx~~*~~xX

Author's notes:

For those curious, yes, Fate's Rail Gun in the last chapter was partially inspired by the Railgun anime (another good one that I encourage people to watch). When trying to think up new attacks for Fate, Mikoto's control over electricity and electromagnetism provided some inspiration, although Fate's is a more traditional railgun in that her Zanber sword splits down the middle to provide the two prongs for the "barrel". And as a side fact, whenever I do combat now, I tend to listen to "Only My Railgun" and "Level5 Judglight" (Both Railgun OPs) to get me into the proper mood, heh. I like the upbeat nature of the songs.

Rai in Japanese means "lightning" for those who don't know.

New job has been sapping most of my time, and there were several scenes here I had long debated about how to handle exactly. As always, I'm hoping the next chapter doesn't take as long, heh.

Spoiler for Random thought:

Now we start to get some answers, so we have an New!Jail, Quattro and Due as main culprits. Still we didn`t know who is Cloak-guy, who saved due, since Quattro was in cradle and Due... well, half-dead.